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Zhang H, Shang R, Kim K, Zheng W, Johnson CJ, Sun L, Niu X, Liu L, Zhou J, Liu L, Zhang Z, Uyeno TA, Pei J, Fissette SD, Green SA, Samudra SP, Wen J, Zhang J, Eggenschwiler JT, Menke DB, Bronner ME, Grishin NV, Li W, Ye K, Zhang Y, Stolfi A, Bi P. Evolution of a chordate-specific mechanism for myoblast fusion. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2022; 8:eadd2696. [PMID: 36054355 PMCID: PMC10848958 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.add2696] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2022] [Accepted: 07/15/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Vertebrate myoblast fusion allows for multinucleated muscle fibers to compound the size and strength of mononucleated cells, but the evolution of this important process is unknown. We investigated the evolutionary origins and function of membrane-coalescing agents Myomaker and Myomixer in various groups of chordates. Here, we report that Myomaker likely arose through gene duplication in the last common ancestor of tunicates and vertebrates, while Myomixer appears to have evolved de novo in early vertebrates. Functional tests revealed a complex evolutionary history of myoblast fusion. A prevertebrate phase of muscle multinucleation driven by Myomaker was followed by the later emergence of Myomixer that enables the highly efficient fusion system of vertebrates. Evolutionary comparisons between vertebrate and nonvertebrate Myomaker revealed key structural and mechanistic insights into myoblast fusion. Thus, our findings suggest an evolutionary model of chordate fusogens and illustrate how new genes shape the emergence of novel morphogenetic traits and mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Haifeng Zhang
- Center for Molecular Medicine, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA
| | - Renjie Shang
- Center for Molecular Medicine, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA
- Department of Genetics, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA
| | - Kwantae Kim
- School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Wei Zheng
- Department of Computational Medicine and Bioinformatics, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
- Department of Biological Chemistry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | | | - Lei Sun
- The Fifth People’s Hospital of Shanghai, and Shanghai Key Laboratory of Medical Epigenetics, Institutes of Biomedical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Xiang Niu
- Tri-Institutional Program in Computational Biology and Medicine, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, USA
| | - Liang Liu
- Department of Statistics, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA
- Institute of Bioinformatics, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA
| | - Jingqi Zhou
- Department of Genetics, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA
| | - Lingshu Liu
- Department of Genetics, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA
| | - Zheng Zhang
- Center for Molecular Medicine, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA
| | | | - Jimin Pei
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - Skye D. Fissette
- Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA
| | - Stephen A. Green
- Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
| | | | - Junfei Wen
- Center for Molecular Medicine, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA
| | - Jianli Zhang
- College of Engineering, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA
| | | | | | - Marianne E. Bronner
- Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
| | - Nick V. Grishin
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
- Department of Biophysics, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - Weiming Li
- Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA
| | - Kaixiong Ye
- Department of Genetics, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA
- Institute of Bioinformatics, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA
| | - Yang Zhang
- Department of Computational Medicine and Bioinformatics, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
- Department of Biological Chemistry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Alberto Stolfi
- School of Biological Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Pengpeng Bi
- Center for Molecular Medicine, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA
- Department of Genetics, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA
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