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Fraguas S, Molina MD, Cebrià F. Colorimetric Whole-Mount In Situ Hybridization in Planarians. Methods Mol Biol 2023; 2680:81-91. [PMID: 37428372 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-3275-8_5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/11/2023]
Abstract
Whole-mount in situ hybridization (WISH) is an extremely useful technique for visualizing specific mRNA targets and solving many biological questions. In planarians, this method is really valuable, for example, for determining gene expression profiles during whole-body regeneration and analyzing the effects of silencing any gene to determine their functions. In this chapter, we present in detail the WISH protocol routinely used in our lab, using a digoxigenin-labelled RNA probe and developing with NBT-BCIP. This protocol is basically that already described in Currie et al. (EvoDevo 7:7, 2016), which put together several modifications developed from several laboratories in recent years that improved the original protocol developed in the laboratory of Kiyokazu Agata in 1997. Although this protocol, or slight modifications of it, is the most common protocol in the planarian field for NBT-BCIP WISH, our results show that key steps such as the use and time of NAC treatment to remove the mucus need to be taken into account depending on the nature of the gene analyzed, especially for the epidermal markers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Susanna Fraguas
- Department of Genetics, Microbiology and Statistics, Faculty of Biology, University of Barcelona, Catalunya, Spain
- Institute of Biomedicine of the University of Barcelona (IBUB), Catalunya, Spain
| | - Mª Dolores Molina
- Department of Genetics, Microbiology and Statistics, Faculty of Biology, University of Barcelona, Catalunya, Spain
- Institute of Biomedicine of the University of Barcelona (IBUB), Catalunya, Spain
| | - Francesc Cebrià
- Department of Genetics, Microbiology and Statistics, Faculty of Biology, University of Barcelona, Catalunya, Spain.
- Institute of Biomedicine of the University of Barcelona (IBUB), Catalunya, Spain.
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Pittendreigh M, Powers K, Cruz MV, Pellettieri J. Quantitative Analysis of Planarian Pigmentation. Methods Mol Biol 2023; 2680:253-261. [PMID: 37428383 PMCID: PMC10441274 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-3275-8_16] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/11/2023]
Abstract
The ommochrome and porphyrin body pigments that give freshwater planarians their brown color are produced by specialized dendritic cells located just beneath the epidermis. During embryonic development and regeneration, differentiation of new pigment cells gradually darkens newly formed tissue. Conversely, prolonged light exposure ablates pigment cells through a porphyrin-based mechanism similar to the one that causes light sensitivity in rare human disorders called porphyrias. Here, we describe a novel program using image-processing algorithms to quantify relative pigment levels in live animals and apply this program to analyze changes in bodily pigmentation induced by light exposure. This tool will facilitate further characterization of genetic pathways that affect pigment cell differentiation, ommochrome and porphyrin biosynthesis, and porphyrin-based photosensitivity.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Kaleigh Powers
- Department of Biology, Keene State College, Keene, NH, USA
| | - Meenalosini Vimal Cruz
- Department of Computer Science, Keene State College, Keene, NH, USA
- Department of Information Technology, Georgia Southern University, Statesboro, GA, USA
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Molina MD, Cebrià F. Decoding Stem Cells: An Overview on Planarian Stem Cell Heterogeneity and Lineage Progression. Biomolecules 2021; 11:1532. [PMID: 34680165 PMCID: PMC8533874 DOI: 10.3390/biom11101532] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2021] [Revised: 10/11/2021] [Accepted: 10/12/2021] [Indexed: 01/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Planarians are flatworms capable of whole-body regeneration, able to regrow any missing body part after injury or amputation. The extraordinary regenerative capacity of planarians is based upon the presence in the adult of a large population of somatic pluripotent stem cells. These cells, called neoblasts, offer a unique system to study the process of stem cell specification and differentiation in vivo. In recent years, FACS-based isolation of neoblasts, RNAi functional analyses as well as high-throughput approaches such as single-cell sequencing have allowed a rapid progress in our understanding of many different aspects of neoblast biology. Here, we summarize our current knowledge on the molecular signatures that define planarian neoblasts heterogeneity, which includes a percentage of truly pluripotent stem cells, and guide the commitment of pluripotent neoblasts into lineage-specific progenitor cells, as well as their differentiation into specific planarian cell types.
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Affiliation(s)
- M. Dolores Molina
- Department of Genetics, Microbiology and Statistics, Faculty of Biology, University of Barcelona, 08028 Barcelona, Spain
- Institute of Biomedicine of the University of Barcelona (IBUB), 08028 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Francesc Cebrià
- Department of Genetics, Microbiology and Statistics, Faculty of Biology, University of Barcelona, 08028 Barcelona, Spain
- Institute of Biomedicine of the University of Barcelona (IBUB), 08028 Barcelona, Spain
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Jaenen V, Fraguas S, Bijnens K, Heleven M, Artois T, Romero R, Smeets K, Cebrià F. Reactive oxygen species rescue regeneration after silencing the MAPK-ERK signaling pathway in Schmidtea mediterranea. Sci Rep 2021; 11:881. [PMID: 33441641 PMCID: PMC7806912 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-79588-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2020] [Accepted: 12/08/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Despite extensive research on molecular pathways controlling the process of regeneration in model organisms, little is known about the actual initiation signals necessary to induce regeneration. Recently, the activation of ERK signaling has been shown to be required to initiate regeneration in planarians. However, how ERK signaling is activated remains unknown. Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) are well-known early signals necessary for regeneration in several models, including planarians. Still, the probable interplay between ROS and MAPK/ERK has not yet been described. Here, by interfering with major mediators (ROS, EGFR and MAPK/ERK), we were able to identify wound-induced ROS, and specifically H2O2, as upstream cues in the activation of regeneration. Our data demonstrate new relationships between regeneration-related ROS production and MAPK/ERK activation at the earliest regeneration stages, as well as the involvement of the EGFR-signaling pathway. Our results suggest that (1) ROS and/or H2O2 have the potential to rescue regeneration after MEK-inhibition, either by H2O2-treatment or light therapy, (2) ROS and/or H2O2 are required for the activation of MAPK/ERK signaling pathway, (3) the EGFR pathway can mediate ROS production and the activation of MAPK/ERK during planarian regeneration.
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Affiliation(s)
- V Jaenen
- Centre for Environmental Sciences, Hasselt University, Diepenbeek, Belgium
| | - S Fraguas
- Department of Genetics, Microbiology and Statistics, Faculty of Biology, University of Barcelona, Av. Diagonal 643, 08028, Barcelona, Spain.,Institute of Biomedicine of the University of Barcelona (IBUB), Barcelona, Spain
| | - K Bijnens
- Centre for Environmental Sciences, Hasselt University, Diepenbeek, Belgium
| | - M Heleven
- Centre for Environmental Sciences, Hasselt University, Diepenbeek, Belgium
| | - T Artois
- Centre for Environmental Sciences, Hasselt University, Diepenbeek, Belgium
| | - R Romero
- Department of Genetics, Microbiology and Statistics, Faculty of Biology, University of Barcelona, Av. Diagonal 643, 08028, Barcelona, Spain
| | - K Smeets
- Centre for Environmental Sciences, Hasselt University, Diepenbeek, Belgium. .,Department of Biology and Geology, Faculty of Sciences, Agoralaan Building D, 3590, Diepenbeek, Belgium.
| | - F Cebrià
- Department of Genetics, Microbiology and Statistics, Faculty of Biology, University of Barcelona, Av. Diagonal 643, 08028, Barcelona, Spain. .,Institute of Biomedicine of the University of Barcelona (IBUB), Barcelona, Spain.
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Miller PW, Dunkel J. Gait-optimized locomotion of wave-driven soft sheets. SOFT MATTER 2020; 16:3991-3999. [PMID: 32255142 DOI: 10.1039/c9sm02103e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Inspired by the robust locomotion of limbless animals in a range of environments, the development of soft robots capable of moving by localized swelling, bending, and other forms of differential growth has become a target for soft matter research over the last decade. Engineered soft robots exhibit a wide range of morphologies, but theoretical investigations of soft robot locomotion have largely been limited to slender bodied or one-dimensional examples. Here, we demonstrate design principles regarding the locomotion of two-dimensional soft materials driven by morphoelastic waves along a dry substrate. Focusing on the essential common aspects of many natural and man-made soft actuators, a continuum model is developed which links the deformation of a thin elastic sheet to surface-bound excitation waves. Through a combination of analytic and numerical methods, we investigate the relationship between induced active stress and self-propulsion performance of self-propelling sheets driven by FitzHugh-Nagumo type chemical waves. Examining the role of both sheet geometry and terrain geography on locomotion, our results can provide guidance for the design of more efficient soft crawling devices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pearson W Miller
- Department of Mathematics, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA, USA.
| | - Jörn Dunkel
- Department of Mathematics, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA, USA.
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An Evolutionary Perspective of Dopachrome Tautomerase Enzymes in Metazoans. Genes (Basel) 2019; 10:genes10070495. [PMID: 31261784 PMCID: PMC6678240 DOI: 10.3390/genes10070495] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2019] [Revised: 06/19/2019] [Accepted: 06/24/2019] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Melanin plays a pivotal role in the cellular processes of several metazoans. The final step of the enzymically-regulated melanin biogenesis is the conversion of dopachrome into dihydroxyindoles, a reaction catalyzed by a class of enzymes called dopachrome tautomerases. We traced dopachrome tautomerase (DCT) and dopachrome converting enzyme (DCE) genes throughout metazoans and we could show that only one class is present in most of the phyla. While DCTs are typically found in deuterostomes, DCEs are present in several protostome phyla, including arthropods and mollusks. The respective DCEs belong to the yellow gene family, previously reported to be taxonomically restricted to insects, bacteria and fungi. Mining genomic and transcriptomic data of metazoans, we updated the distribution of DCE/yellow genes, demonstrating their presence and active expression in most of the lophotrochozoan phyla as well as in copepods (Crustacea). We have traced one intronless DCE/yellow gene through most of the analyzed lophotrochozoan genomes and we could show that it was subjected to genomic diversification in some species, while it is conserved in other species. DCE/yellow was expressed in most phyla, although it showed tissue specific expression patterns. In the parasitic copepod Mytilicola intestinalis DCE/yellow even belonged to the 100 most expressed genes. Both tissue specificity and high expression suggests that diverse functions of this gene family also evolved in other phyla apart from insects.
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