1
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Feigin CY, Moreno JA, Ramos R, Mereby SA, Alivisatos A, Wang W, van Amerongen R, Camacho J, Rasweiler JJ, Behringer RR, Ostrow B, Plikus MV, Mallarino R. Convergent deployment of ancestral functions during the evolution of mammalian flight membranes. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2023; 9:eade7511. [PMID: 36961889 PMCID: PMC10038344 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.ade7511] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/05/2022] [Accepted: 02/21/2023] [Indexed: 05/20/2023]
Abstract
Lateral flight membranes, or patagia, have evolved repeatedly in diverse mammalian lineages. While little is known about patagium development, its recurrent evolution may suggest a shared molecular basis. By combining transcriptomics, developmental experiments, and mouse transgenics, we demonstrate that lateral Wnt5a expression in the marsupial sugar glider (Petaurus breviceps) promotes the differentiation of its patagium primordium. We further show that this function of Wnt5a reprises ancestral roles in skin morphogenesis predating mammalian flight and has been convergently used during patagium evolution in eutherian bats. Moreover, we find that many genes involved in limb development have been redeployed during patagium outgrowth in both the sugar glider and bat. Together, our findings reveal that deeply conserved genetic toolkits contribute to the evolutionary transition to flight in mammals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charles Y. Feigin
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
- School of BioSciences, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria 3010, Australia
| | - Jorge A. Moreno
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
| | - Raul Ramos
- Department of Developmental and Cell Biology, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697, USA
| | - Sarah A. Mereby
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
| | - Ares Alivisatos
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
| | - Wei Wang
- Lewis Sigler Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
| | - Renée van Amerongen
- Swammerdam Institute for Life Sciences, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Jasmin Camacho
- Stowers Institute for Medical Research, Kansas City, MO 64110, USA
| | - John J. Rasweiler
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, State University of New York Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY 11203, USA
| | - Richard R. Behringer
- Department of Genetics, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| | - Bruce Ostrow
- Department of Biology, Grand Valley State University, Allendale, MI 49401, USA
| | - Maksim V. Plikus
- Department of Developmental and Cell Biology, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697, USA
| | - Ricardo Mallarino
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
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2
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Zhu J, Patel R, Trofka A, Harfe BD, Mackem S. Sonic hedgehog is not a limb morphogen but acts as a trigger to specify all digits in mice. Dev Cell 2022; 57:2048-2062.e4. [PMID: 35977544 PMCID: PMC9709693 DOI: 10.1016/j.devcel.2022.07.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2022] [Revised: 06/03/2022] [Accepted: 07/26/2022] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
Limb patterning by Sonic hedgehog (Shh), via either graded spatial or temporal signal integration, is a paradigm for "morphogen" function, yet how Shh instructs distinct digit identities remains controversial. Here, we bypass the Shh requirement in cell survival during outgrowth and demonstrate that a transient, early Shh pulse is both necessary and sufficient for normal mouse limb development. Shh response is only short range and is limited to the Shh-expressing zone during this time window. Shh patterns digits 1-3, anterior to this zone, by an indirect mechanism rather than direct spatial or temporal signal integration. Using a genetic relay-signaling assay, we discover that Shh also specifies digit 1/thumb (thought to be exclusively Shh independent) indirectly, and this finding implicates Shh in a unique regulatory hierarchy for digit 1 evolutionary adaptations such as opposable thumbs. This study illuminates Shh as a trigger for an indirect downstream network that becomes rapidly self-sustaining, with mechanistic relevance for limb development, regeneration, and evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jianjian Zhu
- Cancer and Developmental Biology Laboratory, Center for Cancer Research, NCI, Frederick, MD, USA
| | - Rashmi Patel
- Cancer and Developmental Biology Laboratory, Center for Cancer Research, NCI, Frederick, MD, USA
| | - Anna Trofka
- Cancer and Developmental Biology Laboratory, Center for Cancer Research, NCI, Frederick, MD, USA
| | - Brian D Harfe
- College of Medicine, Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology and the Genetics Institute, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Susan Mackem
- Cancer and Developmental Biology Laboratory, Center for Cancer Research, NCI, Frederick, MD, USA.
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3
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Lancman JJ, Hasso SM, Suzuki T, Kherdjemil Y, Kmita M, Ferris A, Dong PDS, Ros MA, Fallon JF. Downregulation of Grem1 expression in the distal limb mesoderm is a necessary precondition for phalanx development. Dev Dyn 2022; 251:1439-1455. [PMID: 34719843 PMCID: PMC9054941 DOI: 10.1002/dvdy.431] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2021] [Revised: 09/24/2021] [Accepted: 09/25/2021] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The phalanges are the final skeletal elements to form in the vertebrate limb and their identity is regulated by signaling at the phalanx forming region (PFR) located at the tip of the developing digit ray. Here, we seek to explore the relationship between PFR activity and phalanx morphogenesis, which define the most distal limb skeletal elements, and signals associated with termination of limb outgrowth. RESULTS As Grem1 is extinguished in the distal chick limb mesoderm, the chondrogenesis marker Aggrecan is up-regulated in the metatarsals and phalanges. Fate mapping confirms that subridge mesoderm cells contribute to the metatarsal and phalanges when subridge Grem1 is down-regulated. Grem1 overexpression specifically blocks chick phalanx development by inhibiting PFR activity. PFR activity and digit development are also disrupted following overexpression of a Gli3 repressor, which results in Grem1 expression in the distal limb and downregulation of Bmpr1b. CONCLUSIONS Based on expression and fate mapping studies, we propose that downregulation of Grem1 in the distal limb marks the transition from metatarsal to phalanx development. This suggests that downregulation of Grem1 in the distal limb mesoderm is necessary for phalanx development. Grem1 downregulation allows for full PFR activity and phalanx progenitor cell commitment to digit fate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joseph J Lancman
- Human Genetics Program, Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute, La Jolla, California, USA
| | - Sean M Hasso
- Heat Biologics, Morrisville, North Carolina, USA
| | - Takayuki Suzuki
- Department of Animal Sciences, Graduate School of Bioagricultural Sciences, Nagoya University, Nagoya, Japan
| | - Yacine Kherdjemil
- Genetics and Development Research Unit, Institut de Recherches Cliniques de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- Département de Médecine, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Marie Kmita
- Genetics and Development Research Unit, Institut de Recherches Cliniques de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- Département de Médecine, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- Department of Experimental Medicine, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Andrea Ferris
- Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Frederick, Maryland, USA
| | - P Duc S Dong
- Human Genetics Program, Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute, La Jolla, California, USA
- Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute, La Jolla, California, USA
| | - Marian A Ros
- Instituto de Biomedicina y Biotecnología de Cantabria, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas-Universidad de Cantabria-Sociedad para al Desarrollo Cantabria, Santander, Spain
- Departamento de Anatomía y Biología Celular, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Cantabria, Santander, Spain
| | - John F Fallon
- Department of Anatomy, University of Wisconsin Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA
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4
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GLI transcriptional repression is inert prior to Hedgehog pathway activation. Nat Commun 2022; 13:808. [PMID: 35145123 PMCID: PMC8831537 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-28485-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2021] [Accepted: 01/28/2022] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
The Hedgehog (HH) pathway regulates a spectrum of developmental processes through the transcriptional mediation of GLI proteins. GLI repressors control tissue patterning by preventing sub-threshold activation of HH target genes, presumably even before HH induction, while lack of GLI repression activates most targets. Despite GLI repression being central to HH regulation, it is unknown when it first becomes established in HH-responsive tissues. Here, we investigate whether GLI3 prevents precocious gene expression during limb development. Contrary to current dogma, we find that GLI3 is inert prior to HH signaling. While GLI3 binds to most targets, loss of Gli3 does not increase target gene expression, enhancer acetylation or accessibility, as it does post-HH signaling. Furthermore, GLI repression is established independently of HH signaling, but after its onset. Collectively, these surprising results challenge current GLI pre-patterning models and demonstrate that GLI repression is not a default state for the HH pathway. GLI repression has been presumed to be the default transcriptional state and important for pre-patterning tissues. Challenging current models, the authors show that GLI3 repression is inert in the limb bud before the onset of Hedgehog signaling.
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5
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Sharma D, Mirando AJ, Leinroth A, Long JT, Karner CM, Hilton MJ. HES1 is a novel downstream modifier of the SHH-GLI3 Axis in the development of preaxial polydactyly. PLoS Genet 2021; 17:e1009982. [PMID: 34928956 PMCID: PMC8726490 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1009982] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2020] [Revised: 01/04/2022] [Accepted: 12/07/2021] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Sonic Hedgehog/GLI3 signaling is critical in regulating digit number, such that Gli3-deficiency results in polydactyly and Shh-deficiency leads to digit number reductions. SHH/GLI3 signaling regulates cell cycle factors controlling mesenchymal cell proliferation, while simultaneously regulating Grem1 to coordinate BMP-induced chondrogenesis. SHH/GLI3 signaling also coordinates the expression of additional genes, however their importance in digit formation remain unknown. Utilizing genetic and molecular approaches, we identified HES1 as a downstream modifier of the SHH/GLI signaling axis capable of inducing preaxial polydactyly (PPD), required for Gli3-deficient PPD, and capable of overcoming digit number constraints of Shh-deficiency. Our data indicate that HES1, a direct SHH/GLI signaling target, induces mesenchymal cell proliferation via suppression of Cdkn1b, while inhibiting chondrogenic genes and the anterior autopod boundary regulator, Pax9. These findings establish HES1 as a critical downstream effector of SHH/GLI3 signaling in the development of PPD. Sonic Hedgehog/GLI3 signaling is critical in regulating digit number, such that Gli3-deficiency results in additional digits and Shh-deficiency leads to digit number reductions. SHH/GLI3 signaling within the developing limb regulates numerous genes critical for proper autopod (hand/foot) development, however not all target genes are known to be truly important for digit formation. Utilizing genetic and molecular approaches, we identified HES1 as a downstream modifier of the SHH/GLI signaling axis capable of inducing preaxial polydactyly (PPD), required for Gli3-deficient PPD, and capable of overcoming digit number constraints of Shh-deficiency. We further propose a mechanistic model by which HES1 coordinates the expression of genes important for proper digit development. These findings establish HES1 as a critical downstream effector of SHH/GLI3 signaling in the development of PPD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Deepika Sharma
- Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, North Carolina, United States of America
- Department of Biomedical Genetics, University of Rochester School of Medicine, Rochester, New York, United States of America
| | - Anthony J. Mirando
- Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, North Carolina, United States of America
| | - Abigail Leinroth
- Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, North Carolina, United States of America
- Department of Cell Biology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, United States of America
| | - Jason T. Long
- Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, North Carolina, United States of America
- Department of Cell Biology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, United States of America
| | - Courtney M. Karner
- Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, North Carolina, United States of America
- Department of Cell Biology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, United States of America
| | - Matthew J. Hilton
- Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, North Carolina, United States of America
- Department of Cell Biology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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6
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Gamart J, Barozzi I, Laurent F, Reinhardt R, Martins LR, Oberholzer T, Visel A, Zeller R, Zuniga A. SMAD4 target genes are part of a transcriptional network that integrates the response to BMP and SHH signaling during early limb bud patterning. Development 2021; 148:273522. [PMID: 34822715 PMCID: PMC8714076 DOI: 10.1242/dev.200182] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2021] [Accepted: 11/03/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
SMAD4 regulates gene expression in response to BMP and TGFβ signal transduction, and is required for diverse morphogenetic processes, but its target genes have remained largely elusive. Here, we identify the SMAD4 target genes in mouse limb buds using an epitope-tagged Smad4 allele for ChIP-seq analysis in combination with transcription profiling. This analysis shows that SMAD4 predominantly mediates BMP signal transduction during early limb bud development. Unexpectedly, the expression of cholesterol biosynthesis enzymes is precociously downregulated and intracellular cholesterol levels are reduced in Smad4-deficient limb bud mesenchymal progenitors. Most importantly, our analysis reveals a predominant function of SMAD4 in upregulating target genes in the anterior limb bud mesenchyme. Analysis of differentially expressed genes shared between Smad4- and Shh-deficient limb buds corroborates this function of SMAD4 and also reveals the repressive effect of SMAD4 on posterior genes that are upregulated in response to SHH signaling. This analysis uncovers opposing trans-regulatory inputs from SHH- and SMAD4-mediated BMP signal transduction on anterior and posterior gene expression during the digit patterning and outgrowth in early limb buds. Summary: The transcriptional targets of SMAD4 in early limb buds are identified and the largely opposing impact of BMP and SHH signaling on early digit patterning and outgrowth is revealed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julie Gamart
- Developmental Genetics, Department of Biomedicine, University of Basel, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Iros Barozzi
- Functional Genomics Department, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Frédéric Laurent
- Developmental Genetics, Department of Biomedicine, University of Basel, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Robert Reinhardt
- Developmental Genetics, Department of Biomedicine, University of Basel, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Laurène Ramos Martins
- Developmental Genetics, Department of Biomedicine, University of Basel, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Thomas Oberholzer
- Developmental Genetics, Department of Biomedicine, University of Basel, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Axel Visel
- Functional Genomics Department, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA.,US Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute, Walnut Creek, CA 94598, USA.,School of Natural Sciences, University of California, Merced, CA 95343, USA
| | - Rolf Zeller
- Developmental Genetics, Department of Biomedicine, University of Basel, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Aimée Zuniga
- Developmental Genetics, Department of Biomedicine, University of Basel, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
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7
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Höch R, Schneider RF, Kickuth A, Meyer A, Woltering JM. Spiny and soft-rayed fin domains in acanthomorph fish are established through a BMP- gremlin- shh signaling network. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2021; 118:e2101783118. [PMID: 34230098 PMCID: PMC8307853 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2101783118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
With over 18,000 species, the Acanthomorpha, or spiny-rayed fishes, form the largest and arguably most diverse radiation of vertebrates. One of the key novelties that contributed to their evolutionary success are the spiny rays in their fins that serve as a defense mechanism. We investigated the patterning mechanisms underlying the differentiation of median fin Anlagen into discrete spiny and soft-rayed domains during the ontogeny of the direct-developing cichlid fish Astatotilapia burtoni Distinct transcription factor signatures characterize these two fin domains, whereby mutually exclusive expression of hoxa13a/b with alx4a/b and tbx2b marks the spine to soft-ray boundary. The soft-ray domain is established by BMP inhibition via gremlin1b, which synergizes in the posterior fin with shh secreted from a zone of polarizing activity. Modulation of BMP signaling by chemical inhibition or gremlin1b CRISPR/Cas9 knockout induces homeotic transformations of spines into soft rays and vice versa. The expression of spine and soft-ray genes in nonacanthomorph fins indicates that a combination of exaptation and posterior expansion of an ancestral developmental program for the anterior fin margin allowed the evolution of robustly individuated spiny and soft-rayed domains. We propose that a repeated exaptation of such pattern might underly the convergent evolution of anterior spiny-fin elements across fishes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rebekka Höch
- Zoology and Evolutionary Biology, Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz 78457, Germany
| | - Ralf F Schneider
- Zoology and Evolutionary Biology, Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz 78457, Germany
| | - Alison Kickuth
- Zoology and Evolutionary Biology, Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz 78457, Germany
| | - Axel Meyer
- Zoology and Evolutionary Biology, Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz 78457, Germany
| | - Joost M Woltering
- Zoology and Evolutionary Biology, Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz 78457, Germany
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8
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Woltering JM, Irisarri I, Ericsson R, Joss JMP, Sordino P, Meyer A. Sarcopterygian fin ontogeny elucidates the origin of hands with digits. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2020; 6:eabc3510. [PMID: 32875118 PMCID: PMC7438105 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abc3510] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2020] [Accepted: 07/09/2020] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
How the hand and digits originated from fish fins during the Devonian fin-to-limb transition remains unsolved. Controversy in this conundrum stems from the scarcity of ontogenetic data from extant lobe-finned fishes. We report the patterning of an autopod-like domain by hoxa13 during fin development of the Australian lungfish, the most closely related extant fish relative of tetrapods. Differences from tetrapod limbs include the absence of digit-specific expansion of hoxd13 and hand2 and distal limitation of alx4 and pax9, which potentially evolved through an enhanced response to shh signaling in limbs. These developmental patterns indicate that the digit program originated in postaxial fin radials and later expanded anteriorly inside of a preexisting autopod-like domain during the evolution of limbs. Our findings provide a genetic framework for the transition of fins into limbs that supports the significance of classical models proposing a bending of the tetrapod metapterygial axis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joost M. Woltering
- Zoology and Evolutionary Biology, Department of Biology, Universität Konstanz, Universitätstrasse 10, 78464 Konstanz, Germany
| | - Iker Irisarri
- Zoology and Evolutionary Biology, Department of Biology, Universität Konstanz, Universitätstrasse 10, 78464 Konstanz, Germany
| | | | | | - Paolo Sordino
- Department of Biology and Evolution of Marine Organisms, Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Villa Comunale, 80121 Naples, Italy
| | - Axel Meyer
- Zoology and Evolutionary Biology, Department of Biology, Universität Konstanz, Universitätstrasse 10, 78464 Konstanz, Germany
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9
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Lex RK, Ji Z, Falkenstein KN, Zhou W, Henry JL, Ji H, Vokes SA. GLI transcriptional repression regulates tissue-specific enhancer activity in response to Hedgehog signaling. eLife 2020; 9:50670. [PMID: 31989924 PMCID: PMC6986877 DOI: 10.7554/elife.50670] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2019] [Accepted: 01/10/2020] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Transcriptional repression needs to be rapidly reversible during embryonic development. This extends to the Hedgehog pathway, which primarily serves to counter GLI repression by processing GLI proteins into transcriptional activators. In investigating the mechanisms underlying GLI repression, we find that a subset of GLI binding regions, termed HH-responsive enhancers, specifically loses acetylation in the absence of HH signaling. These regions are highly enriched around HH target genes and primarily drive HH-specific transcriptional activity in the mouse limb bud. They also retain H3K27ac enrichment in limb buds devoid of GLI activator and repressor, indicating that their activity is primarily regulated by GLI repression. Furthermore, the Polycomb repression complex is not active at most of these regions, suggesting it is not a major mechanism of GLI repression. We propose a model for tissue-specific enhancer activity in which an HDAC-associated GLI repression complex regulates target genes by altering the acetylation status at enhancers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rachel K Lex
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, United States
| | - Zhicheng Ji
- Department of Biostatistics, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, United States
| | - Kristin N Falkenstein
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, United States
| | - Weiqiang Zhou
- Department of Biostatistics, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, United States
| | - Joanna L Henry
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, United States
| | - Hongkai Ji
- Department of Biostatistics, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, United States
| | - Steven A Vokes
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, United States
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10
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Dynamic and self-regulatory interactions among gene regulatory networks control vertebrate limb bud morphogenesis. Curr Top Dev Biol 2020; 139:61-88. [DOI: 10.1016/bs.ctdb.2020.02.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
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11
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Kawahata K, Cordeiro IR, Ueda S, Sheng G, Moriyama Y, Nishimori C, Yu R, Koizumi M, Okabe M, Tanaka M. Evolution of the avian digital pattern. Sci Rep 2019; 9:8560. [PMID: 31189916 PMCID: PMC6561939 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-44913-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2019] [Accepted: 05/23/2019] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Variation in digit number has occurred multiple times in the history of archosaur evolution. The five digits of dinosaur limbs were reduced to three in bird forelimbs, and were further reduced in the vestigial forelimbs of the emu. Regulation of digit number has been investigated previously by examining genes involved in anterior-posterior patterning in forelimb buds among emu (Dromaius novaehollandiae), chicken (Gallus gallus) and zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata). It was described that the expression of posterior genes are conserved among these three birds, whereas expression of anterior genes Gli3 and Alx4 varied significantly. Here we re-examined the expression pattern of Gli3 and Alx4 in the forelimb of emu, chicken and zebra finch. We found that Gli3 is expressed in the anterior region, although its range varied among species, and that the expression pattern of Alx4 in forelimb buds is broadly conserved in a stage-specific manner. We also found that the dynamic expression pattern of the BMP antagonist Gremlin1 (Grem1) in limb buds, which is critical for autopodial expansion, was consistent with the digital pattern of emu, chicken and zebra finch. Furthermore, in emu, variation among individuals was observed in the width of Grem1 expression in forelimb buds, as well as in the adult skeletal pattern. Our results support the view that the signalling system that regulates the dynamic expression of Grem1 in the limb bud contributes substantially to variations in avian digital patterns.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kenta Kawahata
- School of Life Science and Technology, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Yokohama, Japan
| | | | - Shogo Ueda
- School of Life Science and Technology, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Yokohama, Japan.,Laboratory for Immunotherapy, RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences, Yokohama, Japan
| | - Guojun Sheng
- International Research Center for Medical Sciences, Kumamoto University, Kumamoto, Japan.,RIKEN Center for Developmental Biology, Kobe, Japan
| | - Yuuta Moriyama
- School of Life Science and Technology, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Yokohama, Japan.,Department of Physics and Mathematics, College of Science and Engineering, Aoyama Gakuin University, Sagamihara, Japan
| | - Chika Nishimori
- School of Life Science and Technology, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Yokohama, Japan
| | - Reiko Yu
- School of Life Science and Technology, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Yokohama, Japan
| | - Makoto Koizumi
- Laboratory Animal Facilities, The Jikei University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Masataka Okabe
- Department of Anatomy, The Jikei University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Mikiko Tanaka
- School of Life Science and Technology, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Yokohama, Japan.
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12
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Reinhardt R, Gullotta F, Nusspaumer G, Ünal E, Ivanek R, Zuniga A, Zeller R. Molecular signatures identify immature mesenchymal progenitors in early mouse limb buds that respond differentially to morphogen signaling. Development 2019; 146:dev.173328. [PMID: 31076486 PMCID: PMC6550019 DOI: 10.1242/dev.173328] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2018] [Accepted: 05/01/2019] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
The key molecular interactions governing vertebrate limb bud development are a paradigm for studying the mechanisms controlling progenitor cell proliferation and specification during vertebrate organogenesis. However, little is known about the cellular heterogeneity of the mesenchymal progenitors in early limb buds that ultimately contribute to the chondrogenic condensations prefiguring the skeleton. We combined flow cytometric and transcriptome analyses to identify the molecular signatures of several distinct mesenchymal progenitor cell populations present in early mouse forelimb buds. In particular, jagged 1 (JAG1)-positive cells located in the posterior-distal mesenchyme were identified as the most immature limb bud mesenchymal progenitors (LMPs), which crucially depend on SHH and FGF signaling in culture. The analysis of gremlin 1 (Grem1)-deficient forelimb buds showed that JAG1-expressing LMPs are protected from apoptosis by GREM1-mediated BMP antagonism. At the same stage, the osteo-chondrogenic progenitors (OCPs) located in the core mesenchyme are already actively responding to BMP signaling. This analysis sheds light on the cellular heterogeneity of the early mouse limb bud mesenchyme and on the distinct response of LMPs and OCPs to morphogen signaling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert Reinhardt
- Developmental Genetics, Department of Biomedicine, University of Basel, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Fabiana Gullotta
- Developmental Genetics, Department of Biomedicine, University of Basel, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Gretel Nusspaumer
- Developmental Genetics, Department of Biomedicine, University of Basel, 4058 Basel, Switzerland.,Development and Evolution, Centro Andaluz de Biología del Desarrollo, Universidad Pablo de Olavide, 41013 Sevilla, Spain
| | - Erkan Ünal
- Developmental Genetics, Department of Biomedicine, University of Basel, 4058 Basel, Switzerland.,Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics, 4058 Basel, Switzerland.,Bioinformatics Core Facility, Department of Biomedicine, University of Basel, 4056 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Robert Ivanek
- Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics, 4058 Basel, Switzerland.,Bioinformatics Core Facility, Department of Biomedicine, University of Basel, 4056 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Aimée Zuniga
- Developmental Genetics, Department of Biomedicine, University of Basel, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Rolf Zeller
- Developmental Genetics, Department of Biomedicine, University of Basel, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
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13
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Yu Y, Cheng L, Yan B, Zhou C, Qian W, Xiao Y, Qin T, Cao J, Han L, Ma Q, Ma J. Overexpression of Gremlin 1 by sonic hedgehog signaling promotes pancreatic cancer progression. Int J Oncol 2018; 53:2445-2457. [PMID: 30272371 PMCID: PMC6203161 DOI: 10.3892/ijo.2018.4573] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2018] [Accepted: 06/18/2018] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Sonic hedgehog (SHH) signaling is an important promotor of desmoplasia, a critical feature in pancreatic cancer stromal reactions involving the activation of pancreatic stellate cells (PSCs). Gremlin 1 is widely overexpressed in cancer-associated stromal cells, including activated PSCs. In embryonic development, SHH is a potent regulator of Gremlin 1 through an interaction network. This subtle mechanism in the cancer microenvironment remains to be fully elucidated. The present study investigated the association between Gremlin 1 and SHH, and the effect of Gremlin 1 in pancreatic cancer. The expression of Gremlin 1 in different specimens was measured using immunohistochemistry. The correlations among clinico-pathological features and levels of Gremlin 1 were evaluated. Primary human PSCs and pancreatic cancer cell lines were exposed to SHH, cyclopamine, GLI family zinc finger-1 (Gli-1) small interfering RNA (siRNA), and Gremlin 1 siRNA to examine their associations and effects using an MTT assay, reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis, western blot analysis, and migration or invasion assays. The results revealed the overexpression of Gremlin 1 in pancreatic cancer tissues, mainly in the stroma. The levels of Gremlin 1 were significantly correlated with survival rate and pT status. In addition, following activation of the PSCs, the expression levels of Gremlin 1 increased substantially. SHH acts as a potent promoter of the expression of Gremlin 1, and cyclopamine and Gli-1 siRNA modulated this effect. In a screen of pancreatic cancer cell lines, AsPC-1 and BxPC-3 cells expressed high levels of Gremlin 1, but only AsPC-1 cells exhibited a high expression level of SHH. The results of the indirect co-culture experiment suggested that paracrine SHH from the AsPC-1 cells induced the expression of Gremlin 1 in the PSCs. Furthermore, Gremlin 1 siRNA negatively regulated the proliferation and migration of PSCs, and the proliferation, invasion and epithelial-mesenchymal transition of AsPC-1 and BxPC-3 cells. Based on the data from the present study, it was concluded that an abnormal expression level of Gremlin 1 in pancreatic cancer was induced by SHH signaling, and that the overexpression of Gremlin 1 enabled pancreatic cancer progression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yongtian Yu
- Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, First Affiliated Hospital, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710061, P.R. China
| | - Liang Cheng
- Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, First Affiliated Hospital, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710061, P.R. China
| | - Bin Yan
- Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, First Affiliated Hospital, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710061, P.R. China
| | - Cancan Zhou
- Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, First Affiliated Hospital, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710061, P.R. China
| | - Weikun Qian
- Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, First Affiliated Hospital, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710061, P.R. China
| | - Ying Xiao
- Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, First Affiliated Hospital, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710061, P.R. China
| | - Tao Qin
- Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, First Affiliated Hospital, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710061, P.R. China
| | - Junyu Cao
- Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, First Affiliated Hospital, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710061, P.R. China
| | - Liang Han
- Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, First Affiliated Hospital, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710061, P.R. China
| | - Qingyong Ma
- Department of Hepatobiliary Surgery, First Affiliated Hospital, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710061, P.R. China
| | - Jiguang Ma
- Department of Anesthesiology, First Affiliated Hospital, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710061, P.R. China
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14
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Genetic interaction between Gli3 and Ezh2 during limb pattern formation. Mech Dev 2018; 151:30-36. [PMID: 29729398 DOI: 10.1016/j.mod.2018.05.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2018] [Revised: 04/18/2018] [Accepted: 05/01/2018] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Anteroposterior polarity of the early limb bud is essential for proper skeletal pattern formation. In order to establish anterior identity, hedgehog signalling needs to be repressed by GLI3 repressor activity, although the mechanism of repression is not well defined. Here we describe genetic interaction between Gli3 and Enhancer of Zeste 2 (Ezh2) that encodes the histone methyltransferase subunit of Polycomb Repressive Complex 2. Loss of anterior limb identity was evident in both Gli3 and conditional Ezh2 single mutant embryos. This phenotype was enhanced in Ezh2;Gli3 double mutant embryos, but more closely resembled that of Ezh2 single mutants. Absent anterior skeletal elements in the Ezh2 mutant background were not rescued by either reduction of Gli activator or forced expression of Gli repressor. The data imply that Ezh2 is epistatic to Gli3 and suggest the possibility that hedghehog activation is repressed by the recruitment of polycomb repressive complex 2.
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15
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Tulenko FJ, Massey JL, Holmquist E, Kigundu G, Thomas S, Smith SME, Mazan S, Davis MC. Fin-fold development in paddlefish and catshark and implications for the evolution of the autopod. Proc Biol Sci 2018; 284:rspb.2016.2780. [PMID: 28539509 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2016.2780] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2016] [Accepted: 04/24/2017] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
The evolutionary origin of the autopod involved a loss of the fin-fold and associated dermal skeleton with a concomitant elaboration of the distal endoskeleton to form a wrist and digits. Developmental studies, primarily from teleosts and amniotes, suggest a model for appendage evolution in which a delay in the AER-to-fin-fold conversion fuelled endoskeletal expansion by prolonging the function of AER-mediated regulatory networks. Here, we characterize aspects of paired fin development in the paddlefish Polyodon spathula (a non-teleost actinopterygian) and catshark Scyliorhinus canicula (chondrichthyan) to explore aspects of this model in a broader phylogenetic context. Our data demonstrate that in basal gnathostomes, the autopod marker HoxA13 co-localizes with the dermoskeleton component And1 to mark the position of the fin-fold, supporting recent work demonstrating a role for HoxA13 in zebrafish fin ray development. Additionally, we show that in paddlefish, the proximal fin and fin-fold mesenchyme share a common mesodermal origin, and that components of the Shh/LIM/Gremlin/Fgf transcriptional network critical to limb bud outgrowth and patterning are expressed in the fin-fold with a profile similar to that of tetrapods. Together these data draw contrast with hypotheses of AER heterochrony and suggest that limb-specific morphologies arose through evolutionary changes in the differentiation outcome of conserved early distal patterning compartments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Frank J Tulenko
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Kennesaw State University, GA 30144, USA.,Australian Regenerative Medicine Institute, Monash University, Victoria, 3800, Australia
| | - James L Massey
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Colorado Boulder, CO 80309, USA
| | - Elishka Holmquist
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Kennesaw State University, GA 30144, USA
| | - Gabriel Kigundu
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Kennesaw State University, GA 30144, USA
| | - Sarah Thomas
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Kennesaw State University, GA 30144, USA
| | - Susan M E Smith
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Kennesaw State University, GA 30144, USA
| | - Sylvie Mazan
- CNRS, Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, UMR7232, Observatoire Océanologique, F-66650 Banyuls-sur-Mer, France
| | - Marcus C Davis
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Kennesaw State University, GA 30144, USA
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16
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Zhu XJ, Fang Y, Xiong Y, Wang M, Yang X, Li Y, Zhang X, Dai ZM, Qiu M, Zhang Z, Zhang Z. Disruption of Wnt production in Shh
lineage causes bone malformation in mice, mimicking human Malik-Percin-type syndactyly. FEBS Lett 2018; 592:356-368. [DOI: 10.1002/1873-3468.12963] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2017] [Revised: 12/08/2017] [Accepted: 12/22/2017] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Xiao-Jing Zhu
- Institute of Life Sciences; College of Life and Environmental Science; Key Laboratory of Mammalian Organogenesis and Regeneration; Hangzhou Normal University; Zhejiang China
| | - Yukun Fang
- Institute of Life Sciences; College of Life and Environmental Science; Key Laboratory of Mammalian Organogenesis and Regeneration; Hangzhou Normal University; Zhejiang China
| | - Yanan Xiong
- Institute of Life Sciences; College of Life and Environmental Science; Key Laboratory of Mammalian Organogenesis and Regeneration; Hangzhou Normal University; Zhejiang China
| | - Min Wang
- Institute of Life Sciences; College of Life and Environmental Science; Key Laboratory of Mammalian Organogenesis and Regeneration; Hangzhou Normal University; Zhejiang China
| | - Xueqin Yang
- Institute of Life Sciences; College of Life and Environmental Science; Key Laboratory of Mammalian Organogenesis and Regeneration; Hangzhou Normal University; Zhejiang China
| | - Yan Li
- Institute of Life Sciences; College of Life and Environmental Science; Key Laboratory of Mammalian Organogenesis and Regeneration; Hangzhou Normal University; Zhejiang China
| | - Xiaoyun Zhang
- Institute of Life Sciences; College of Life and Environmental Science; Key Laboratory of Mammalian Organogenesis and Regeneration; Hangzhou Normal University; Zhejiang China
| | - Zhong-Min Dai
- Institute of Life Sciences; College of Life and Environmental Science; Key Laboratory of Mammalian Organogenesis and Regeneration; Hangzhou Normal University; Zhejiang China
| | - Mengsheng Qiu
- Institute of Life Sciences; College of Life and Environmental Science; Key Laboratory of Mammalian Organogenesis and Regeneration; Hangzhou Normal University; Zhejiang China
| | - Ze Zhang
- Department of Ophthalmology; Tulane Medical Center; Tulane University; New Orleans LA USA
| | - Zunyi Zhang
- Institute of Life Sciences; College of Life and Environmental Science; Key Laboratory of Mammalian Organogenesis and Regeneration; Hangzhou Normal University; Zhejiang China
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17
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Zhu J, Mackem S. John Saunders' ZPA, Sonic hedgehog and digit identity - How does it really all work? Dev Biol 2017; 429:391-400. [PMID: 28161524 PMCID: PMC5540801 DOI: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2017.02.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2016] [Revised: 01/28/2017] [Accepted: 02/01/2017] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
Among John Saunders' many seminal contributions to developmental biology, his discovery of the limb 'zone of polarizing activity' (ZPA) is arguably one of the most memorable and ground-breaking. This discovery introduced the limb as a premier model for understanding developmental patterning and promoted the concept of patterning by a morphogen gradient. In the 50 years since the discovery of the ZPA, Sonic hedgehog (Shh) has been identified as the ZPA factor and the basic components of the signaling pathway and many aspects of its regulation have been elucidated. Although much has also been learned about how it regulates growth, the mechanism by which Shh patterns the limb, how it acts to instruct digit 'identity', nevertheless remains an enigma. This review focuses on what has been learned about Shh function in the limb and the outstanding puzzles that remain to be solved.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jianjian Zhu
- Cancer and Developmental Biology Laboratory, CCR, NCI, Frederick, MD 21702, United States
| | - Susan Mackem
- Cancer and Developmental Biology Laboratory, CCR, NCI, Frederick, MD 21702, United States.
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18
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Delgado I, Torres M. Coordination of limb development by crosstalk among axial patterning pathways. Dev Biol 2017; 429:382-386. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2017.03.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/07/2016] [Revised: 02/28/2017] [Accepted: 03/05/2017] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
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19
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Li J, Cui Y, Xu J, Wang Q, Yang X, Li Y, Zhang X, Qiu M, Zhang Z, Zhang Z. Suppressor of Fused restraint of Hedgehog activity level is critical for osteogenic proliferation and differentiation during calvarial bone development. J Biol Chem 2017; 292:15814-15825. [PMID: 28794157 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m117.777532] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2017] [Revised: 07/04/2017] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Hedgehog signaling plays crucial roles in the development of calvarial bone, relying on the activation of Gli transcription factors. However, the molecular mechanism of the role of regulated Gli protein level in osteogenic specification of mesenchyme still remains elusive. Here, we show by conditionally inactivating Suppressor of Fused (Sufu), a critical repressor of Hedgehog signaling, in Wnt1-Cre-mediated cranial neural crest (CNC) or Dermo1-Cre-mediated mesodermal lineages that Sufu restraint of Hedgehog activity level is critical for differentiation of preosteogenic mesenchyme. Ablation of Sufu results in failure of calvarial bone formation, including CNC-derived bones and mesoderm-derived bones, depending on the Cre line being used. Although mesenchymal cells populate to frontonasal destinations, where they are then condensed, Sufu deletion significantly inhibits the proliferation of osteoprogenitor cells, and these cells no longer differentiate into osteoblasts. We show that there is suppression of Runx2 and Osterix, the osteogenic regulators, in calvarial mesenchyme in the Sufu mutant. We show that down-regulation of several genes upstream to Runx2 and Osterix is manifested within the calvarial primordia, including Bmp2 and its downstream genes Msx1/2 and Dlx5 By contrast, we find that Gli1, the Hedgehog activity readout gene, is excessively activated in mesenchyme. Deletion of Sufu in CNC leads to a discernible decrease in the repressive Gli3 form and an increase in the full-length Gli2. Finally, we demonstrate that simultaneous deletion of Gli2 and Sufu in CNC completely restores calvarial bone formation, suggesting that a sustained level of Hedgehog activity is critical in specification of the osteogenic mesenchymal cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jianying Li
- From the Zhejiang Key Laboratory for Organogenesis and Regenerative Technology, Institute of Life Sciences, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou 310036, China and
| | - Ying Cui
- From the Zhejiang Key Laboratory for Organogenesis and Regenerative Technology, Institute of Life Sciences, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou 310036, China and
| | - Jie Xu
- From the Zhejiang Key Laboratory for Organogenesis and Regenerative Technology, Institute of Life Sciences, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou 310036, China and
| | - Qihui Wang
- From the Zhejiang Key Laboratory for Organogenesis and Regenerative Technology, Institute of Life Sciences, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou 310036, China and
| | - Xueqin Yang
- From the Zhejiang Key Laboratory for Organogenesis and Regenerative Technology, Institute of Life Sciences, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou 310036, China and
| | - Yan Li
- From the Zhejiang Key Laboratory for Organogenesis and Regenerative Technology, Institute of Life Sciences, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou 310036, China and
| | - Xiaoyun Zhang
- From the Zhejiang Key Laboratory for Organogenesis and Regenerative Technology, Institute of Life Sciences, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou 310036, China and
| | - Mengsheng Qiu
- From the Zhejiang Key Laboratory for Organogenesis and Regenerative Technology, Institute of Life Sciences, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou 310036, China and
| | - Ze Zhang
- the Department of Ophthamology, Tulane Medical Center, Tulane University, New Orleans, Louisiana 70112
| | - Zunyi Zhang
- From the Zhejiang Key Laboratory for Organogenesis and Regenerative Technology, Institute of Life Sciences, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou 310036, China and
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20
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Tickle C, Towers M. Sonic Hedgehog Signaling in Limb Development. Front Cell Dev Biol 2017; 5:14. [PMID: 28293554 PMCID: PMC5328949 DOI: 10.3389/fcell.2017.00014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 108] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2016] [Accepted: 02/08/2017] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
The gene encoding the secreted protein Sonic hedgehog (Shh) is expressed in the polarizing region (or zone of polarizing activity), a small group of mesenchyme cells at the posterior margin of the vertebrate limb bud. Detailed analyses have revealed that Shh has the properties of the long sought after polarizing region morphogen that specifies positional values across the antero-posterior axis (e.g., thumb to little finger axis) of the limb. Shh has also been shown to control the width of the limb bud by stimulating mesenchyme cell proliferation and by regulating the antero-posterior length of the apical ectodermal ridge, the signaling region required for limb bud outgrowth and the laying down of structures along the proximo-distal axis (e.g., shoulder to digits axis) of the limb. It has been shown that Shh signaling can specify antero-posterior positional values in limb buds in both a concentration- (paracrine) and time-dependent (autocrine) fashion. Currently there are several models for how Shh specifies positional values over time in the limb buds of chick and mouse embryos and how this is integrated with growth. Extensive work has elucidated downstream transcriptional targets of Shh signaling. Nevertheless, it remains unclear how antero-posterior positional values are encoded and then interpreted to give the particular structure appropriate to that position, for example, the type of digit. A distant cis-regulatory enhancer controls limb-bud-specific expression of Shh and the discovery of increasing numbers of interacting transcription factors indicate complex spatiotemporal regulation. Altered Shh signaling is implicated in clinical conditions with congenital limb defects and in the evolution of the morphological diversity of vertebrate limbs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cheryll Tickle
- Department of Biology and Biochemistry, University of BathBath, UK
| | - Matthew Towers
- Department of Biomedical Science, The Bateson Centre, University of SheffieldWestern Bank, Sheffield, UK
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21
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Kvon EZ, Kamneva OK, Melo US, Barozzi I, Osterwalder M, Mannion BJ, Tissières V, Pickle CS, Plajzer-Frick I, Lee EA, Kato M, Garvin TH, Akiyama JA, Afzal V, Lopez-Rios J, Rubin EM, Dickel DE, Pennacchio LA, Visel A. Progressive Loss of Function in a Limb Enhancer during Snake Evolution. Cell 2016; 167:633-642.e11. [PMID: 27768887 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2016.09.028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 190] [Impact Index Per Article: 23.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2016] [Revised: 08/07/2016] [Accepted: 09/15/2016] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
The evolution of body shape is thought to be tightly coupled to changes in regulatory sequences, but specific molecular events associated with major morphological transitions in vertebrates have remained elusive. We identified snake-specific sequence changes within an otherwise highly conserved long-range limb enhancer of Sonic hedgehog (Shh). Transgenic mouse reporter assays revealed that the in vivo activity pattern of the enhancer is conserved across a wide range of vertebrates, including fish, but not in snakes. Genomic substitution of the mouse enhancer with its human or fish ortholog results in normal limb development. In contrast, replacement with snake orthologs caused severe limb reduction. Synthetic restoration of a single transcription factor binding site lost in the snake lineage reinstated full in vivo function to the snake enhancer. Our results demonstrate changes in a regulatory sequence associated with a major body plan transition and highlight the role of enhancers in morphological evolution. PAPERCLIP.
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Affiliation(s)
- Evgeny Z Kvon
- MS 84-171, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Olga K Kamneva
- Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Uirá S Melo
- MS 84-171, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Iros Barozzi
- MS 84-171, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Marco Osterwalder
- MS 84-171, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Brandon J Mannion
- MS 84-171, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | | | - Catherine S Pickle
- MS 84-171, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | | | - Elizabeth A Lee
- MS 84-171, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Momoe Kato
- MS 84-171, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Tyler H Garvin
- MS 84-171, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Jennifer A Akiyama
- MS 84-171, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Veena Afzal
- MS 84-171, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Javier Lopez-Rios
- Department of Biomedicine, University of Basel, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Edward M Rubin
- MS 84-171, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; U.S. Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute, Walnut Creek, CA 94598, USA
| | - Diane E Dickel
- MS 84-171, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Len A Pennacchio
- MS 84-171, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; U.S. Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute, Walnut Creek, CA 94598, USA.
| | - Axel Visel
- MS 84-171, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; U.S. Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute, Walnut Creek, CA 94598, USA; School of Natural Sciences, University of California, Merced, CA 95343, USA.
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22
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Mueller AJ, Tew SR, Vasieva O, Clegg PD, Canty-Laird EG. A systems biology approach to defining regulatory mechanisms for cartilage and tendon cell phenotypes. Sci Rep 2016; 6:33956. [PMID: 27670352 PMCID: PMC5037390 DOI: 10.1038/srep33956] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2016] [Accepted: 09/05/2016] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Phenotypic plasticity of adult somatic cells has provided emerging avenues for the development of regenerative therapeutics. In musculoskeletal biology the mechanistic regulatory networks of genes governing the phenotypic plasticity of cartilage and tendon cells has not been considered systematically. Additionally, a lack of strategies to effectively reproduce in vitro functional models of cartilage and tendon is retarding progress in this field. De- and redifferentiation represent phenotypic transitions that may contribute to loss of function in ageing musculoskeletal tissues. Applying a systems biology network analysis approach to global gene expression profiles derived from common in vitro culture systems (monolayer and three-dimensional cultures) this study demonstrates common regulatory mechanisms governing de- and redifferentiation transitions in cartilage and tendon cells. Furthermore, evidence of convergence of gene expression profiles during monolayer expansion of cartilage and tendon cells, and the expression of key developmental markers, challenges the physiological relevance of this culture system. The study also suggests that oxidative stress and PI3K signalling pathways are key modulators of in vitro phenotypes for cells of musculoskeletal origin.
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Affiliation(s)
- A. J. Mueller
- Department of Musculoskeletal Biology, Institute of Ageing and Chronic Disease, Faculty of Health & Life Sciences, University of Liverpool, William Henry Duncan Building, 6 West Derby Street, Liverpool, L7 8TX, United Kingdom
| | - S. R. Tew
- Department of Musculoskeletal Biology, Institute of Ageing and Chronic Disease, Faculty of Health & Life Sciences, University of Liverpool, William Henry Duncan Building, 6 West Derby Street, Liverpool, L7 8TX, United Kingdom
- The MRC-Arthritis Research UK Centre for Integrated Research into Musculoskeletal Ageing (CIMA)
| | - O. Vasieva
- Institute of Integrative Biology, Biosciences Building, University of Liverpool, Crown St., Liverpool, L69 7ZB, United Kingdom
| | - P. D. Clegg
- Department of Musculoskeletal Biology, Institute of Ageing and Chronic Disease, Faculty of Health & Life Sciences, University of Liverpool, William Henry Duncan Building, 6 West Derby Street, Liverpool, L7 8TX, United Kingdom
- The MRC-Arthritis Research UK Centre for Integrated Research into Musculoskeletal Ageing (CIMA)
| | - E. G. Canty-Laird
- Department of Musculoskeletal Biology, Institute of Ageing and Chronic Disease, Faculty of Health & Life Sciences, University of Liverpool, William Henry Duncan Building, 6 West Derby Street, Liverpool, L7 8TX, United Kingdom
- The MRC-Arthritis Research UK Centre for Integrated Research into Musculoskeletal Ageing (CIMA)
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23
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Anderson MJ, Schimmang T, Lewandoski M. An FGF3-BMP Signaling Axis Regulates Caudal Neural Tube Closure, Neural Crest Specification and Anterior-Posterior Axis Extension. PLoS Genet 2016; 12:e1006018. [PMID: 27144312 PMCID: PMC4856314 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1006018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2015] [Accepted: 04/08/2016] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
During vertebrate axis extension, adjacent tissue layers undergo profound morphological changes: within the neuroepithelium, neural tube closure and neural crest formation are occurring, while within the paraxial mesoderm somites are segmenting from the presomitic mesoderm (PSM). Little is known about the signals between these tissues that regulate their coordinated morphogenesis. Here, we analyze the posterior axis truncation of mouse Fgf3 null homozygotes and demonstrate that the earliest role of PSM-derived FGF3 is to regulate BMP signals in the adjacent neuroepithelium. FGF3 loss causes elevated BMP signals leading to increased neuroepithelium proliferation, delay in neural tube closure and premature neural crest specification. We demonstrate that elevated BMP4 depletes PSM progenitors in vitro, phenocopying the Fgf3 mutant, suggesting that excessive BMP signals cause the Fgf3 axis defect. To test this in vivo we increased BMP signaling in Fgf3 mutants by removing one copy of Noggin, which encodes a BMP antagonist. In such mutants, all parameters of the Fgf3 phenotype were exacerbated: neural tube closure delay, premature neural crest specification, and premature axis termination. Conversely, genetically decreasing BMP signaling in Fgf3 mutants, via loss of BMP receptor activity, alleviates morphological defects. Aberrant apoptosis is observed in the Fgf3 mutant tailbud. However, we demonstrate that cell death does not cause the Fgf3 phenotype: blocking apoptosis via deletion of pro-apoptotic genes surprisingly increases all Fgf3 defects including causing spina bifida. We demonstrate that this counterintuitive consequence of blocking apoptosis is caused by the increased survival of BMP-producing cells in the neuroepithelium. Thus, we show that FGF3 in the caudal vertebrate embryo regulates BMP signaling in the neuroepithelium, which in turn regulates neural tube closure, neural crest specification and axis termination. Uncovering this FGF3-BMP signaling axis is a major advance toward understanding how these tissue layers interact during axis extension with important implications in human disease. During embryological development, the vertebrate embryo undergoes profound growth in a head-to-tail direction. During this process, formation of different structures within adjacent tissue layers must occur in a coordinated fashion. Insights into how these adjacent tissues molecularly communicate with each other is essential to understanding both basic embryology and the underlying causes of human birth defects. Mice lacking Fgf3, which encodes a secreted signaling factor, have long been known to have premature axis termination, but the underlying mechanism has not been studied until now. Through a series of complex genetic experiments, we show that FGF3 is an essential factor for coordination of neural tube development and axis extension. FGF3 is secreted from the mesodermal layer, which is the major driver of extending the axis, and negatively regulates expression of another class of secreted signaling molecules in the neuroepithelium, BMPs. In the absence of FGF3, excessive BMP signals cause a delay in neural tube closure, premature specification of neural crest cells and negatively affect the mesoderm, causing a premature termination of the embryological axis. Our work suggests that FGF3 may be a player in the complex etiology of the human birth defect, spina bifida, the failure of posterior neural tube closure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew J. Anderson
- Genetics of Vertebrate Development Section, Cancer and Developmental Biology Lab, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Frederick, Maryland, United States of America
| | - Thomas Schimmang
- Instituto de Biología y Genética Molecular, Universidad de Valladolid y Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Valladolid, Spain
| | - Mark Lewandoski
- Genetics of Vertebrate Development Section, Cancer and Developmental Biology Lab, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Frederick, Maryland, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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FGF8 and SHH substitute for anterior–posterior tissue interactions to induce limb regeneration. Nature 2016; 533:407-10. [DOI: 10.1038/nature17972] [Citation(s) in RCA: 106] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2014] [Accepted: 04/05/2016] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
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Jeon S, Seong RH. Anteroposterior Limb Skeletal Patterning Requires the Bifunctional Action of SWI/SNF Chromatin Remodeling Complex in Hedgehog Pathway. PLoS Genet 2016; 12:e1005915. [PMID: 26959361 PMCID: PMC4784730 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1005915] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/04/2015] [Accepted: 02/15/2016] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Graded Sonic hedgehog (Shh) signaling governs vertebrate limb skeletal patterning along the anteroposterior (AP) axis by regulating the activity of bifunctional Gli transcriptional regulators. The genetic networks involved in this patterning are well defined, however, the epigenetic control of the process by chromatin remodelers remains unknown. Here, we report that the SWI/SNF chromatin remodeling complex is essential for Shh-driven limb AP patterning. Specific inactivation of Srg3/mBaf155, a core subunit of the remodeling complex, in developing limb buds hampered the transcriptional upregulation of Shh/Gli target genes, including the Shh receptor Ptch1 and its downstream effector Gli1 in the posterior limb bud. In addition, Srg3 deficiency induced ectopic activation of the Hedgehog (Hh) pathway in the anterior mesenchyme, resulting in loss of progressive asymmetry. These defects in the Hh pathway accompanied aberrant BMP activity and disruption of chondrogenic differentiation in zeugopod and autopod primordia. Notably, our data revealed that dual control of the Hh pathway by the SWI/SNF complex is essential for spatiotemporal transcriptional regulation of the BMP antagonist Gremlin1, which affects the onset of chondrogenesis. This study uncovers the bifunctional role of the SWI/SNF complex in the Hh pathway to determine the fate of AP skeletal progenitors. Anteroposterior (AP) limb skeletal patterning is directed by morphogen Sonic hedgehog (Shh) signaling. Modulation of Shh responsiveness and repression of Shh pathway activity in distinct limb bud regions are essential for proper limb skeletal formation. Although the genetic networks involved in these processes have been identified, epigenetic control by chromatin remodeler remains unknown. We have unraveled the function of the SWI/SNF chromatin remodeling complex in Shh signaling during limb patterning. The complex activates the responses of the posterior limb progenitors to Shh, however, it represses the signaling in the anterior limb progenitors. Here we provide genetic evidence for the dual requirement of the SWI/SNF complex in Shh signaling to pattern AP limb skeletal elements.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shin Jeon
- School of Biological Sciences, Institute of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea
| | - Rho Hyun Seong
- School of Biological Sciences, Institute of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea
- * E-mail:
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26
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The many lives of SHH in limb development and evolution. Semin Cell Dev Biol 2016; 49:116-24. [DOI: 10.1016/j.semcdb.2015.12.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/22/2015] [Revised: 12/21/2015] [Accepted: 12/23/2015] [Indexed: 01/17/2023]
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27
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Conte D, Garaffo G, Lo Iacono N, Mantero S, Piccolo S, Cordenonsi M, Perez-Morga D, Orecchia V, Poli V, Merlo GR. The apical ectodermal ridge of the mouse model of ectrodactyly Dlx5;Dlx6-/- shows altered stratification and cell polarity, which are restored by exogenous Wnt5a ligand. Hum Mol Genet 2015; 25:740-54. [PMID: 26685160 PMCID: PMC4743692 DOI: 10.1093/hmg/ddv514] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/04/2015] [Accepted: 12/10/2015] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
The congenital malformation split hand/foot (SHFM) is characterized by missing central fingers and dysmorphology or fusion of the remaining ones. Type-1 SHFM is linked to deletions/rearrangements of the DLX5–DLX6 locus and point mutations in the DLX5 gene. The ectrodactyly phenotype is reproduced in mice by the double knockout (DKO) of Dlx5 and Dlx6. During limb development, the apical ectodermal ridge (AER) is a key-signaling center responsible for early proximal–distal growth and patterning. In Dlx5;6 DKO hindlimbs, the central wedge of the AER loses multilayered organization and shows down-regulation of FGF8 and Dlx2. In search for the mechanism, we examined the non-canonical Wnt signaling, considering that Dwnt-5 is a target of distalless in Drosophila and the knockout of Wnt5, Ryk, Ror2 and Vangl2 in the mouse causes severe limb malformations. We found that in Dlx5;6 DKO limbs, the AER expresses lower levels of Wnt5a, shows scattered β-catenin responsive cells and altered basolateral and planar cell polarity (PCP). The addition of Wnt5a to cultured embryonic limbs restored the expression of AER markers and its stratification. Conversely, the inhibition of the PCP molecule c-jun N-terminal kinase caused a loss of AER marker expression. In vitro, the addition of Wnt5a on mixed primary cultures of embryonic ectoderm and mesenchyme was able to confer re-polarization. We conclude that the Dlx-related ectrodactyly defect is associated with the loss of basoapical and PCP, due to reduced Wnt5a expression and that the restoration of the Wnt5a level is sufficient to partially reverts AER misorganization and dysmorphology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniele Conte
- Department of Molecular Biotechnology and Health Sciences, University of Torino, Torino, Italy
| | - Giulia Garaffo
- Department of Molecular Biotechnology and Health Sciences, University of Torino, Torino, Italy
| | - Nadia Lo Iacono
- Human Genome Department, Istituto Tecnologie Biomediche, CNR Milano, Italy
| | - Stefano Mantero
- Human Genome Department, Istituto Tecnologie Biomediche, CNR Milano, Italy
| | - Stefano Piccolo
- Department of Molecular Medicine, University of Padova, Padova, Italy and
| | | | - David Perez-Morga
- Laboratoire de Parasitologie Moléculaire, IBMM-DBM, Université Libre de Bruxelles, B-6041 Gosselies, Belgium
| | - Valeria Orecchia
- Department of Molecular Biotechnology and Health Sciences, University of Torino, Torino, Italy
| | - Valeria Poli
- Department of Molecular Biotechnology and Health Sciences, University of Torino, Torino, Italy
| | - Giorgio R Merlo
- Department of Molecular Biotechnology and Health Sciences, University of Torino, Torino, Italy,
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Wang YH, Keenan SR, Lynn J, McEwan JC, Beck CW. Gremlin1 induces anterior–posterior limb bifurcations in developing Xenopus limbs but does not enhance limb regeneration. Mech Dev 2015; 138 Pt 3:256-67. [DOI: 10.1016/j.mod.2015.10.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/18/2015] [Accepted: 10/21/2015] [Indexed: 02/02/2023]
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Lewandowski JP, Du F, Zhang S, Powell MB, Falkenstein KN, Ji H, Vokes SA. Spatiotemporal regulation of GLI target genes in the mammalian limb bud. Dev Biol 2015; 406:92-103. [PMID: 26238476 DOI: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2015.07.022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/02/2015] [Revised: 07/22/2015] [Accepted: 07/28/2015] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
GLI proteins convert Sonic hedgehog (Shh) signaling into a transcriptional output in a tissue-specific fashion. The Shh pathway has been extensively studied in the limb bud, where it helps regulate growth through a SHH-FGF feedback loop. However, the transcriptional response is still poorly understood. We addressed this by determining the gene expression patterns of approximately 200 candidate GLI-target genes and identified three discrete SHH-responsive expression domains. GLI-target genes expressed in the three domains are predominately regulated by derepression of GLI3 but have different temporal requirements for SHH. The GLI binding regions associated with these genes harbor both distinct and common DNA motifs. Given the potential for interaction between the SHH and FGF pathways, we also measured the response of GLI-target genes to inhibition of FGF signaling and found the majority were either unaffected or upregulated. These results provide the first characterization of the spatiotemporal response of a large group of GLI-target genes and lay the foundation for a systems-level understanding of the gene regulatory networks underlying SHH-mediated limb patterning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jordan P Lewandowski
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, Institute for Cellular and Molecular Biology, University of Texas at Austin, 2500 Speedway Stop A4800, Austin, TX 78712, USA
| | - Fang Du
- Department of Biostatistics, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615 North Wolfe Street, Room E3638, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Shilu Zhang
- Department of Biostatistics, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615 North Wolfe Street, Room E3638, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Marian B Powell
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, Institute for Cellular and Molecular Biology, University of Texas at Austin, 2500 Speedway Stop A4800, Austin, TX 78712, USA
| | - Kristin N Falkenstein
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, Institute for Cellular and Molecular Biology, University of Texas at Austin, 2500 Speedway Stop A4800, Austin, TX 78712, USA
| | - Hongkai Ji
- Department of Biostatistics, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615 North Wolfe Street, Room E3638, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Steven A Vokes
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, Institute for Cellular and Molecular Biology, University of Texas at Austin, 2500 Speedway Stop A4800, Austin, TX 78712, USA.
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Suppressor of Fused Is Required for Determining Digit Number and Identity via Gli3/Fgfs/Gremlin. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0128006. [PMID: 26001200 PMCID: PMC4441507 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0128006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2014] [Accepted: 04/21/2015] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
The anterior-posterior patterning of the vertebrate limb bud requires closely coordinated signaling interactions, including Sonic Hedgehog (Shh)-mediated counteraction of the Gli3 transcription factor in the distal and posterior mesenchyme of the limb bud. Suppressor of Fused (Sufu), an intracellular negative regulator of Shh signaling via Gli2 and Gli3, is implicated in early development of the mouse limb bud. However, how Sufu is involved in the genetic regulation of limb bud patterning still remains elusive. In this study, we show that the conditional deletion of Sufu in the mesenchyme of the early limb bud results in polydactyly with loss of digit identity and supernumerary bones in the wrist and the ankle. These pattern alterations are associated with anterior expansion of HoxD genes located at the 5’ end of the cluster. By focusing on gene expression analysis of Shh/Gremlin1/Fgf signaling critical for the establishment and maintenance of anterior-posterior patterning, we show that early response to loss of Sufu involves anterior prolongation of Fgf4 and Fgf8 expression in the apical ectodermal ridge at E10.5. We also reveal the anterior activation of Shh-dependent posterior markers Ptc1, Gli1 and Gremlin in limb buds lacking Sufu. Furthermore, we find that loss of Sufu leads to attenuated levels of repressor Gli2 and repressor Gli3 in the early limb bud. Moreover, expression of Hand2 is activated in the entire limb bud at the early outgrowth stage in the mutant lacking Sufu. Thus, we provide evidence that Sufu is involved in the genetic network that restricts the posterior expression of Gli2/3/Hand2 and Gremlin/Fgf in limb bud patterning.
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31
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Raggi C, Invernizzi P, Andersen JB. Impact of microenvironment and stem-like plasticity in cholangiocarcinoma: molecular networks and biological concepts. J Hepatol 2015; 62:198-207. [PMID: 25220250 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhep.2014.09.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 58] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2014] [Revised: 08/30/2014] [Accepted: 09/03/2014] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Clinical complexity, anatomic diversity and molecular heterogeneity of cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) represent a major challenge in the assessment of effective targeted therapies. Molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying the diversity of CCA growth patterns remain a key issue of clinical concern. Crucial questions comprise the nature of the CCA-origin, the initial target for cellular transformation as well as the relationship with the cancer stem cells (CSC) concept. Additionally, since CCA often develops in the context of an inflammatory milieu (cirrhosis and cholangitis), the stromal compartment or tumour microenvironment (TME) likely promotes initiation and progression of this malignancy, contributing to its heterogeneity. This review will emphasize the dynamic interplay between stem-like intrinsic and TME-extrinsic pathways, which may represent novel options for multi-targeted therapies in CCA.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chiara Raggi
- Liver Unit and Center for Autoimmune Liver Diseases, Humanitas Clinical and Research Center, Rozzano, Italy.
| | - Pietro Invernizzi
- Liver Unit and Center for Autoimmune Liver Diseases, Humanitas Clinical and Research Center, Rozzano, Italy
| | - Jesper B Andersen
- Biotech Research and Innovation Centre, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark.
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32
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Andersen JB. Molecular pathogenesis of intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma. JOURNAL OF HEPATO-BILIARY-PANCREATIC SCIENCES 2014; 22:101-13. [PMID: 25174625 DOI: 10.1002/jhbp.155] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
Cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) is an orphan cancer of the hepatobiliary tract, the incidence of which has increased in the past decade. The molecular pathogenesis of this treatment-refractory disease is poorly understood. Desmoplasia is a key causal feature of CCA; however, a majority of tumors develop with no apparent etiological background. The impact of the stromal compartment on tumor progression as well as resistance to therapy is in vogue, and the epithelial-stromal crosstalk may present a target for novel treatment strategies. As such, the complexity of tumor cellularity and the molecular mechanisms underlying the diversity of growth patterns of this malignancy remain a clinical concern. It is crucial to advance our present understanding of the molecular pathogenesis of CCA to improve current clinical strategies and patient outcome. This will facilitate the delineation of patient subsets and individualization for precision therapies. Many questions persevere as to the evolutionary process and cellular origin of the initial transforming event, the context of intratumoral plasticity and the causal driver action. Next-generation sequencing has begun to underline the persistent alterations, which may be the trigger of acquired drug resistance, and the cause of metastasis and disease recurrence. A complex issue that remains is to account for the heterogeneous pool of "backseat" aberrations, which in chromosomal proximity to the causative variant are likely to influence, for example, drug response. This review explores the recent advances in defining the molecular pathways implicated in the development of this devastating disease and, which present putative clinical strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jesper B Andersen
- Andersen Group, Biotech Research and Innovation Centre, University of Copenhagen, Ole Maaløes Vej 5, DK-2200, Copenhagen N, Denmark.
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33
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Al-Qattan MM. Central and ulnar cleft hands: a review of concurrent deformities in a series of 47 patients and their pathogenesis. J Hand Surg Eur Vol 2014; 39:510-9. [PMID: 23824219 DOI: 10.1177/1753193413496945] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
Two main types of cleft hands have been described. The ulnar cleft hand deformity is very rare and is characterized by two constant features: a deep cleft radial to the little finger and hypoplasia of the ulnar digits. The pathogenesis of ulnar clefts is unknown. The second type is the central cleft hand deformity, which is characterized by a soft tissue/bone defect in the hand centrally. Patients with central clefts also have several concurrent deformities in the remaining digits. This paper reviews the clinical features of three cases with ulnar cleft hands and 44 cases of central cleft hands, with special emphasis on concurrent deformities. The author's hypothesis of pathogenesis for both types of clefts and their concurrent deformities is then offered.
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Affiliation(s)
- M M Al-Qattan
- Division of Plastic Surgery, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
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34
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Transcriptional regulation of graded Hedgehog signaling. Semin Cell Dev Biol 2014; 33:73-80. [PMID: 24862856 DOI: 10.1016/j.semcdb.2014.05.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2014] [Revised: 05/07/2014] [Accepted: 05/08/2014] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
The Hedgehog (Hh) pathway plays conserved roles in regulating a diverse spectrum of developmental processes. In some developmental contexts, a gradient of Hh protein specifies multiple cell types in a dose-dependent fashion, thereby acting as a morphogen. Hh signaling ultimately acts on the transcriptional level through GLI proteins. In the presence of Hh signaling full length GLI proteins act as transcriptional activators of target genes. Conversely, in the absence of Hh, GLI proteins act as transcriptional repressors. This review will highlight mechanisms contributing to how graded Hh signaling might translate to differential GLI activity and be interpreted into distinct transcriptional responses.
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35
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Schatz O, Langer E, Ben-Arie N. Gene dosage of the transcription factor Fingerin (bHLHA9) affects digit development and links syndactyly to ectrodactyly. Hum Mol Genet 2014; 23:5394-401. [PMID: 24852374 DOI: 10.1093/hmg/ddu257] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Distal limb deformities are congenital malformations with phenotypic variability, genetic heterogeneity and complex inheritance. Among these, split-hand/foot malformation is an ectrodactyly with missing central fingers, yielding a lobster claw-like hand, which when combined with long-bone deficiency is defined as split-hand/foot malformation and long-bone deficiency (SHFLD) that is genetically heterogeneous. Copy number variation (CNV) consisting of 17p13.3 duplication was identified in unrelated pedigrees, underlying SHFLD3 (OMIM 612576). Although the transcription factor Fingerin (bHLHA9) is the only complete gene in the critical region, its biological role is not yet known and there are no data supporting its involvement in mammalian limb development. We have generated knockout mice in which only the entire coding region of Fingerin was deleted, and indeed found that most null mice display some limb defects. These include various levels of simple asymmetrical syndactyly, characterized by webbed fingers, generated by incomplete separation of soft, but not skeletal, tissues between forelimb digits 2 and 3. As expected, hand pads of Fingerin null embryos exhibited reduced apoptosis between digital rays 2 and 3. This defect was shown to cause syndactyly when the same limbs were grown ex vivo following the apoptosis assay. Extrapolating from mouse data, we suggest that Fingerin loss-of-function in humans may underlie MSSD syndactyly (OMIM 609432), which was mapped to the same locus. Taken together, Fingerin gene dosage links two different congenital limb malformations, syndactyly and ectrodactyly, which were previously postulated to share a common etiology. These results add limb disorders to the growing list of diseases resulting from CNV.
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Affiliation(s)
- Omri Schatz
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Institute of Life Sciences, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 91904, Israel
| | - Erez Langer
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Institute of Life Sciences, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 91904, Israel
| | - Nissim Ben-Arie
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Institute of Life Sciences, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 91904, Israel
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36
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Li X, Pei D, Zheng H. Transitions between epithelial and mesenchymal states during cell fate conversions. Protein Cell 2014; 5:580-91. [PMID: 24805308 PMCID: PMC4130923 DOI: 10.1007/s13238-014-0064-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2014] [Accepted: 03/23/2014] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Cell fate conversion is considered as the changing of one type of cells to another type including somatic cell reprogramming (de-differentiation), differentiation, and trans-differentiation. Epithelial and mesenchymal cells are two major types of cells and the transitions between these two cell states as epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and mesenchymal-epithelial transition (MET) have been observed during multiple cell fate conversions including embryonic development, tumor progression and somatic cell reprogramming. In addition, MET and sequential EMT-MET during the generation of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) from fibroblasts have been reported recently. Such observation is consistent with multiple rounds of sequential EMT-MET during embryonic development which could be considered as a reversed process of reprogramming at least partially. Therefore in current review, we briefly discussed the potential roles played by EMT, MET, or even sequential EMT-MET during different kinds of cell fate conversions. We also provided some preliminary hypotheses on the mechanisms that connect cell state transitions and cell fate conversions based on results collected from cell cycle, epigenetic regulation, and stemness acquisition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiang Li
- CAS Key Laboratory of Regenerative Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, 510530, China
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Lewandowski JP, Pursell TA, Rabinowitz AH, Vokes SA. Manipulating gene expression and signaling activity in cultured mouse limb bud cells. Dev Dyn 2014; 243:928-36. [PMID: 24633820 DOI: 10.1002/dvdy.24128] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2013] [Revised: 03/11/2014] [Accepted: 03/11/2014] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The vertebrate limb bud is a well-established system for studying the mechanisms driving growth and patterning of an embryonic tissue. However, approaches for manipulating gene expression are currently limited to time-consuming methods. Culturing primary limb bud cells could potentially be used as a quicker assay. However, limb cells in culture quickly differentiate into cartilage under normal conditions, and approaches delivering DNA and siRNA into primary limb cells in culture are limited. These technical limitations have restricted the utility of limb buds for investigating problems that require higher-throughput approaches. RESULTS In this report, we describe adaptations to a method for culturing primary limb bud cells in a pre-chondrogenic state, and generate a population of mouse primary limb cells that are responsive to Hedgehog (Hh) signaling. Hh-stimulated cells upregulate Hh target genes as well as an exogenous Hh-responsive reporter. We then describe a method for highly efficient delivery of plasmids and siRNAs into cultured primary limb bud cells in a 96-well format. CONCLUSIONS Cultures of primary limb bud cells are amenable to gene manipulation under conditions that maintain the limb cells in an Hh-responsive, undifferentiated state. This approach provides a medium-throughput system to manipulate gene expression, and test DNA regulatory elements.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jordan P Lewandowski
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, Institute for Cellular and Molecular Biology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas
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38
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Pignatti E, Zeller R, Zuniga A. To BMP or not to BMP during vertebrate limb bud development. Semin Cell Dev Biol 2014; 32:119-27. [PMID: 24718318 DOI: 10.1016/j.semcdb.2014.04.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2014] [Accepted: 04/01/2014] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
The analysis of vertebrate limb bud development provides insight of general relevance into the signaling networks that underlie the controlled proliferative expansion of large populations of mesenchymal progenitors, cell fate determination and initiation of differentiation. In particular, extensive genetic analysis of mouse and experimental manipulation of chicken limb bud development has revealed the self-regulatory feedback signaling systems that interlink the main morphoregulatory signaling pathways including BMPs and their antagonists. It this review, we showcase the key role of BMPs and their antagonists during limb bud development. This review provides an understanding of the key morphoregulatory interactions that underlie the highly dynamic changes in BMP activity and signal transduction as limb bud development progresses from initiation and setting-up the signaling centers to determination and formation of the chondrogenic primordia for the limb skeletal elements.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emanuele Pignatti
- Developmental Genetics, Department Biomedicine, University of Basel, Mattenstrasse 28, CH-4058 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Rolf Zeller
- Developmental Genetics, Department Biomedicine, University of Basel, Mattenstrasse 28, CH-4058 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Aimée Zuniga
- Developmental Genetics, Department Biomedicine, University of Basel, Mattenstrasse 28, CH-4058 Basel, Switzerland.
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Li Q, Lewandowski JP, Powell MB, Norrie JL, Cho SH, Vokes SA. A Gli silencer is required for robust repression of gremlin in the vertebrate limb bud. Development 2014; 141:1906-14. [PMID: 24700818 DOI: 10.1242/dev.104299] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
The transcriptional response to the Hedgehog (Hh) pathway is mediated by Gli proteins, which function as context-dependent transcriptional activators or repressors. However, the mechanism by which Gli proteins regulate their target genes is poorly understood. Here, we have performed the first genetic characterization of a Gli-dependent cis-regulatory module (CRM), focusing on its regulation of Grem1 in the mouse limb bud. The CRM, termed GRE1 (Gli responsive element 1), can act as both an enhancer and a silencer. The enhancer activity requires sustained Hh signaling. As a Gli-dependent silencer, GRE1 prevents ectopic transcription of Grem1 driven through additional CRMs. In doing so, GRE1 works with additional GREs to robustly regulate Grem1. We suggest that multiple Gli CRMs may be a general mechanism for mediating a robust transcriptional response to the Hh pathway.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiang Li
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, Institute for Cellular and Molecular Biology, University of Texas at Austin, 2500 Speedway Stop A4800, Austin, TX 78712, USA
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Akiyama R, Kawakami H, Taketo MM, Evans SM, Wada N, Petryk A, Kawakami Y. Distinct populations within Isl1 lineages contribute to appendicular and facial skeletogenesis through the β-catenin pathway. Dev Biol 2014; 387:37-48. [PMID: 24424161 DOI: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2014.01.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2013] [Revised: 12/27/2013] [Accepted: 01/03/2014] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
Isl1 expression marks progenitor populations in developing embryos. In this study, we investigated the contribution of Isl1-expressing cells that utilize the β-catenin pathway to skeletal development. Inactivation of β-catenin in Isl1-expressing cells caused agenesis of the hindlimb skeleton and absence of the lower jaw (agnathia). In the hindlimb, Isl1-lineages broadly contributed to the mesenchyme; however, deletion of β-catenin in the Isl1-lineage caused cell death only in a discrete posterior domain of nascent hindlimb bud mesenchyme. We found that the loss of posterior mesenchyme, which gives rise to Shh-expressing posterior organizer tissue, caused loss of posterior gene expression and failure to expand chondrogenic precursor cells, leading to severe truncation of the hindlimb. In facial tissues, Isl1-expressing cells broadly contributed to facial epithelium. We found reduced nuclear β-catenin accumulation and loss of Fgf8 expression in mandibular epithelium of Isl1(-/-) embryos. Inactivating β-catenin in Isl1-expressing epithelium caused both loss of epithelial Fgf8 expression and death of mesenchymal cells in the mandibular arch without affecting epithelial proliferation and survival. These results suggest a Isl1→β-catenin→Fgf8 pathway that regulates mesenchymal survival and development of the lower jaw in the mandibular epithelium. By contrast, activating β-catenin signaling in Isl1-lineages caused activation of Fgf8 broadly in facial epithelium. Our results provide evidence that, despite its broad contribution to hindlimb mesenchyme and facial epithelium, the Isl1-β-catenin pathway regulates skeletal development of the hindlimb and lower jaw through discrete populations of cells that give rise to Shh-expressing posterior hindlimb mesenchyme and Fgf8-expressing mandibular epithelium.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryutaro Akiyama
- Department of Genetics, Cell Biology and Development, University of Minnesota, 321 Church Street SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA; Stem Cell Institute, University of Minnesota, 2001 Sixth Street SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
| | - Hiroko Kawakami
- Department of Genetics, Cell Biology and Development, University of Minnesota, 321 Church Street SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA; Stem Cell Institute, University of Minnesota, 2001 Sixth Street SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
| | - M Mark Taketo
- Department of Pharmacology, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, Kyoto 606-8051, Japan
| | - Sylvia M Evans
- Skaggs School of Pharmacy, and Department of Medicine, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA
| | - Naoyuki Wada
- Applied Biological Science, Faculty of Science and Technology, Tokyo University of Science, 2641 Yamazaki, Noda, Chiba 278-8510, Japan
| | - Anna Petryk
- Department of Genetics, Cell Biology and Development, University of Minnesota, 321 Church Street SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA; Department of Pediatrics, University of Minnesota, 2450 Riverside Avenue, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA; Developmental Biology Center, University of Minnesota, 321 Church Street SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
| | - Yasuhiko Kawakami
- Department of Genetics, Cell Biology and Development, University of Minnesota, 321 Church Street SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA; Stem Cell Institute, University of Minnesota, 2001 Sixth Street SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA; Developmental Biology Center, University of Minnesota, 321 Church Street SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA; Lillehei Heart Institute, University of Minnesota, 312 Church Street SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA.
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Andersen JB, Thorgeirsson SS. A perspective on molecular therapy in cholangiocarcinoma: present status and future directions. Hepat Oncol 2014; 1:143-157. [PMID: 24772266 PMCID: PMC3997260 DOI: 10.2217/hep.13.4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) is an orphan cancer with limited understanding of its genetic and genomic pathogenesis. Typically, it is highly treatment-refractory and patient outcome is dismal. Currently, there are no approved therapeutics for CCA and surgical resection remains the only option with curative intent. Clinical trials are currently being performed in a mixed cohort of biliary tract cancers that includes intrahepatic CCA, extrahepatic/perihilar CCA, distal extrahepatic CCA, gallbladder carcinoma and, in rare cases, even pancreatic cancers. Today, clinical trials fail primarily because they are underpowered mixed cohorts and designed without intent to enrich for markers to optimize success for targeted therapy. This review aims to emphasize current clinical attempts for targeted therapy of CCA, as well as highlight promising new candidate pathways revealed by translational genomics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jesper B Andersen
- National Cancer Institute, Laboratory of Experimental Carcinogenesis, NIH, Building 37, Room 4146A, 37 Convent Drive, Bethesda, MD 20892-4262, USA
- Biotech Research & Innovation Centre, University of Copenhagen, DK-2200 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Snorri S Thorgeirsson
- National Cancer Institute, Laboratory of Experimental Carcinogenesis, NIH, Building 37, Room 4146A, 37 Convent Drive, Bethesda, MD 20892-4262, USA
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42
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Xie G, Karaca G, Swiderska-Syn M, Michelotti GA, Krüger L, Chen Y, Premont RT, Choi SS, Diehl AM. Cross-talk between Notch and Hedgehog regulates hepatic stellate cell fate in mice. Hepatology 2013; 58:1801-13. [PMID: 23703657 PMCID: PMC3758784 DOI: 10.1002/hep.26511] [Citation(s) in RCA: 95] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2012] [Accepted: 04/28/2013] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
UNLABELLED Liver repair involves phenotypic changes in hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) and reactivation of morphogenic signaling pathways that modulate epithelial-to-mesenchymal/mesenchymal-to-epithelial transitions, such as Notch and Hedgehog (Hh). Hh stimulates HSCs to become myofibroblasts (MFs). Recent lineage tracing studies in adult mice with injured livers showed that some MFs became multipotent progenitors to regenerate hepatocytes, cholangiocytes, and HSCs. We studied primary HSC cultures and two different animal models of fibrosis to evaluate the hypothesis that activating the Notch pathway in HSCs stimulates them to become (and remain) MFs through a mechanism that involves an epithelial-to-mesenchymal-like transition and requires cross-talk with the canonical Hh pathway. We found that when cultured HSCs transitioned into MFs, they activated Hh signaling, underwent an epithelial-to-mesenchymal-like transition, and increased Notch signaling. Blocking Notch signaling in MFs/HSCs suppressed Hh activity and caused a mesenchymal-to-epithelial-like transition. Inhibiting the Hh pathway suppressed Notch signaling and also induced a mesenchymal-to-epithelial-like transition. Manipulating Hh and Notch signaling in a mouse multipotent progenitor cell line evoked similar responses. In mice, liver injury increased Notch activity in MFs and Hh-responsive MF progeny (i.e., HSCs and ductular cells). Conditionally disrupting Hh signaling in MFs of bile-duct-ligated mice inhibited Notch signaling and blocked accumulation of both MF and ductular cells. CONCLUSIONS The Notch and Hedgehog pathways interact to control the fate of key cell types involved in adult liver repair by modulating epithelial-to-mesenchymal-like/mesenchymal-to-epithelial-like transitions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guanhua Xie
- Division of Gastroenterology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC
| | - Gamze Karaca
- Division of Gastroenterology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC
| | | | | | - Leandi Krüger
- Division of Gastroenterology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC
| | - Yuping Chen
- Division of Gastroenterology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC
| | - Richard T. Premont
- Division of Gastroenterology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC
| | - Steve S. Choi
- Division of Gastroenterology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC,Section of Gastroenterology, Department of Medicine, Durham Veteran Affairs Medical Center, Durham, NC
| | - Anna Mae Diehl
- Division of Gastroenterology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC
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Sheth R, Grégoire D, Dumouchel A, Scotti M, Pham JMT, Nemec S, Bastida MF, Ros MA, Kmita M. Decoupling the function of Hox and Shh in developing limb reveals multiple inputs of Hox genes on limb growth. Development 2013; 140:2130-8. [PMID: 23633510 DOI: 10.1242/dev.089409] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
Abstract
Limb development relies on an exquisite coordination between growth and patterning, but the underlying mechanisms remain elusive. Anterior-posterior and proximal-distal specification initiates in early limb bud concomitantly with the proliferative expansion of limb cells. Previous studies have shown that limb bud growth initially relies on fibroblast growth factors (FGFs) produced in the apical ectodermal ridge (AER-FGFs), the maintenance of which relies on a positive-feedback loop involving sonic hedgehog (Shh) and the BMP antagonist gremlin 1 (Grem1). The positive cross-regulation between Shh and the HoxA and HoxD clustered genes identified an indirect effect of Hox genes on the maintenance of AER-FGFs but the respective function of Shh and Hox genes in this process remains unknown. Here, by uncoupling Hox and Shh function, we show that HoxA and HoxD genes are required for proper AER-FGFs expression, independently of their function in controlling Shh expression. In addition, we provide evidence that the Hox-dependent control of AER-FGF expression is achieved through the regulation of key mesenchymal signals, namely Grem1 and Fgf10, ensuring proper epithelial-mesenchymal interactions. Notably, HoxA and HoxD genes contribute to both the initial activation of Grem1 and the subsequent anterior expansion of its expression domain. We propose that the intricate interactions between Hox genes and the FGF and Shh signaling pathways act as a molecular network that ensures proper limb bud growth and patterning, probably contributing to the coordination of these two processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rushikesh Sheth
- Laboratory of Genetics and Development, Institut de Recherches Cliniques de Montréal (IRCM, Québec, Canada
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Alfano C, Studer M. Neocortical arealization: evolution, mechanisms, and open questions. Dev Neurobiol 2013; 73:411-47. [PMID: 23239642 DOI: 10.1002/dneu.22067] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2012] [Revised: 11/03/2012] [Accepted: 12/06/2012] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
The mammalian neocortex is a structure with no equals in the vertebrates and is the seat of the highest cerebral functions, such as thoughts and consciousness. It is radially organized into six layers and tangentially subdivided into functional areas deputed to the elaboration of sensory information, association between different stimuli, and selection and triggering of voluntary movements. The process subdividing the neocortical field into several functional areas is called "arealization". Each area has its own cytoarchitecture, connectivity, and peculiar functions. In the last century, several neuroscientists have investigated areal structure and the mechanisms that have led during evolution to the rising of the neocortex and its organization. The extreme conservation in the positioning and wiring of neocortical areas among different mammalian families suggests a conserved genetic program orchestrating neocortical patterning. However, the impressive plasticity of the neocortex, which is able to rewire and reorganize areal structures and connectivity after impairments of sensory pathways, argues for a more complex scenario. Indeed, even if genetics and molecular biology helped in identifying several genes involved in the arealization process, the logic underlying the neocortical bauplan is still beyond our comprehension. In this review, we will introduce the present knowledge and hypotheses on the ontogenesis and evolution of neocortical areas. Then, we will focus our attention on some open issues, which are still unresolved, and discuss some recent studies that might open new directions to be explored in the next few years.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christian Alfano
- Institute of Biology Valrose, iBV, UMR INSERM1091/CNRS7277/UNS, Nice, F-06108, France.
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45
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Gross JB, Kerney R, Hanken J, Tabin CJ. Molecular anatomy of the developing limb in the coquí frog, Eleutherodactylus coqui. Evol Dev 2013; 13:415-26. [PMID: 23016903 DOI: 10.1111/j.1525-142x.2011.00500.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
The vertebrate limb demonstrates remarkable similarity in basic organization across phylogenetically disparate groups. To gain further insight into how this morphological similarity is maintained in different developmental contexts, we explored the molecular anatomy of size-reduced embryos of the Puerto Rican coquí frog, Eleutherodactylus coqui. This animal demonstrates direct development, a life-history strategy marked by rapid progression from egg to adult and absence of a free-living, aquatic larva. Nonetheless, coquí exhibits a basal anuran limb structure, with four toes on the forelimb and five toes on the hind limb. We investigated the extent to which coquí limb bud development conforms to the model of limb development derived from amniote studies. Toward this end, we characterized dynamic patterns of expression for 13 critical patterning genes across three principle stages of limb development. As expected, most genes demonstrate expression patterns that are essentially unchanged compared to amniote species. For example, we identified an EcFgf8-expression domain within the apical ectodermal ridge (AER). This expression pattern defines a putatively functional AER signaling domain, despite the absence of a morphological ridge in coquí embryos. However, two genes, EcMeis2 and EcAlx4, demonstrate altered domains of expression, which imply a potential shift in gene function between coquí frogs and amniote model systems. Unexpectedly, several genes thought to be critical for limb patterning in other systems, including EcFgf4, EcWnt3a, EcWnt7a, and EcGremlin, demonstrated no evident expression pattern in the limb at the three stages we analyzed. The absence of EcFgf4 and EcWnt3a expression during limb patterning is perhaps not surprising, given that neither gene is critical for proper limb development in the mouse, based on knockout and expression analyses. In contrast, absence of EcWnt7a and EcGremlin is surprising, given that expression of these molecules appears to be absolutely essential in all other model systems so far examined. Although this analysis substantiates the existence of a core set of ancient limb-patterning molecules, which likely mediate identical functions across highly diverse vertebrate forms, it also reveals remarkable evolutionary flexibility in the genetic control of a conserved morphological pattern across evolutionary time.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joshua B Gross
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
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46
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47
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Bénazet JD, Pignatti E, Nugent A, Unal E, Laurent F, Zeller R. Smad4 is required to induce digit ray primordia and to initiate the aggregation and differentiation of chondrogenic progenitors in mouse limb buds. Development 2012; 139:4250-60. [PMID: 23034633 DOI: 10.1242/dev.084822] [Citation(s) in RCA: 58] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
SMAD4 is an essential mediator of canonical TGFβ/BMP signal transduction and we inactivated Smad4 in mouse limb buds from early stages onward to study its functions in the mesenchyme. While this Smad4 inactivation did not alter the early Sox9 distribution, prefiguring the chondrogenic primordia of the stylopod and zeugopod, it disrupted formation of all Sox9-positive digit ray primordia. Specific inactivation of Smad4 during handplate development pointed to its differential requirement for posterior and anterior digit ray primordia. At the cellular level, Smad4 deficiency blocked the aggregation of Sox9-positive progenitors, thereby preventing chondrogenic differentiation as revealed by absence of collagen type II. The progressive loss of SOX9 due to disrupting digit ray primordia and chondrogenesis was paralleled by alterations in genes marking other lineages. This pointed to a general loss of tissue organization and diversion of mutant cells toward non-specific connective tissue. Conditional inactivation of Bmp2 and Bmp4 indicated that the loss of digit ray primordia and increase in connective tissue were predominantly a consequence of disrupting SMAD4-mediated BMP signal transduction. In summary, our analysis reveals that SMAD4 is required to initiate: (1) formation of the Sox9-positive digit ray primordia; and (2) aggregation and chondrogenic differentiation of all limb skeletal elements.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jean-Denis Bénazet
- Developmental Genetics, Department of Biomedicine, University of Basel, Mattenstrasse 28, Basel, Switzerland
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48
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Skeletal development in the fossorial gymnophthalmids Calyptommatus sinebrachiatus and Nothobachia ablephara. ZOOLOGY 2012; 115:289-301. [DOI: 10.1016/j.zool.2012.02.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2011] [Revised: 01/26/2012] [Accepted: 02/02/2012] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
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49
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Zuniga A, Laurent F, Lopez-Rios J, Klasen C, Matt N, Zeller R. Conserved cis-regulatory regions in a large genomic landscape control SHH and BMP-regulated Gremlin1 expression in mouse limb buds. BMC DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY 2012; 12:23. [PMID: 22888807 PMCID: PMC3541112 DOI: 10.1186/1471-213x-12-23] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2012] [Accepted: 07/12/2012] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Background Mouse limb bud is a prime model to study the regulatory interactions that control vertebrate organogenesis. Major aspects of limb bud development are controlled by feedback loops that define a self-regulatory signalling system. The SHH/GREM1/AER-FGF feedback loop forms the core of this signalling system that operates between the posterior mesenchymal organiser and the ectodermal signalling centre. The BMP antagonist Gremlin1 (GREM1) is a critical node in this system, whose dynamic expression is controlled by BMP, SHH, and FGF signalling and key to normal progression of limb bud development. Previous analysis identified a distant cis-regulatory landscape within the neighbouring Formin1 (Fmn1) locus that is required for Grem1 expression, reminiscent of the genomic landscapes controlling HoxD and Shh expression in limb buds. Results Three highly conserved regions (HMCO1-3) were identified within the previously defined critical genomic region and tested for their ability to regulate Grem1 expression in mouse limb buds. Using a combination of BAC and conventional transgenic approaches, a 9 kb region located ~70 kb downstream of the Grem1 transcription unit was identified. This region, termed Grem1 Regulatory Sequence 1 (GRS1), is able to recapitulate major aspects of Grem1 expression, as it drives expression of a LacZ reporter into the posterior and, to a lesser extent, in the distal-anterior mesenchyme. Crossing the GRS1 transgene into embryos with alterations in the SHH and BMP pathways established that GRS1 depends on SHH and is modulated by BMP signalling, i.e. integrates inputs from these pathways. Chromatin immunoprecipitation revealed interaction of endogenous GLI3 proteins with the core cis-regulatory elements in the GRS1 region. As GLI3 is a mediator of SHH signal transduction, these results indicated that SHH directly controls Grem1 expression through the GRS1 region. Finally, all cis-regulatory regions within the Grem1 genomic landscape locate to the DNAse I hypersensitive sites identified in this genomic region by the ENCODE consortium. Conclusions This study establishes that distant cis-regulatory regions scattered through a larger genomic landscape control the highly dynamic expression of Grem1, which is key to normal progression of mouse limb bud development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aimée Zuniga
- Developmental Genetics, Department of Biomedicine, University of Basel, Mattenstrasse 28, CH-4058, Basel, Switzerland.
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Singh BN, Doyle MJ, Weaver CV, Koyano-Nakagawa N, Garry DJ. Hedgehog and Wnt coordinate signaling in myogenic progenitors and regulate limb regeneration. Dev Biol 2012; 371:23-34. [PMID: 22902898 DOI: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2012.07.033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2012] [Revised: 07/28/2012] [Accepted: 07/30/2012] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Amphibians have a remarkable capacity for limb regeneration. Following a severe injury, there is complete regeneration with restoration of the patterning and cellular architecture of the amputated limb. While studies have focused on the structural anatomical changes during amphibian limb regeneration, the signaling mechanisms that govern cellular dedifferentiation and blastemal progenitors are unknown. Here, we demonstrate the temporal and spatial requirement for hedgehog (Hh) signaling and its hierarchical correlation with respect to Wnt signaling during newt limb regeneration. While the dedifferentiation process of mature lineages does not depend on Hh signaling, the proliferation and the migration of the dedifferentiated cells are dependent on Hh signaling. Temporally controlled chemical inactivation of the Hh pathway indicates that Hh-mediated antero-posterior (AP) specification occurs early during limb regeneration and that Hh is subsequently required for expansion of the blastemal progenitors. Inhibition of Hh signaling results in G0/G1 arrest with a concomitant reduction in S-phase and G2/M population in myogenic progenitors. Furthermore, Hh inhibition leads to reduced Pax7-positive cells and fewer regenerating fibers relative to control tissue. We demonstrate that activation of Wnt signaling rescues the inhibition of Hh pathway mainly by enhancing proliferative signals, possibly mediated through TCF4 activity. Collectively, our results demonstrate coordinated signaling of Hh and Wnt activities in regulating blastemal progenitors and their hierarchical positioning during limb regeneration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bhairab N Singh
- Lillehei Heart Institute, University of Minnesota, 420 Delaware Street, SE. MMC508, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
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