1
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Miao Y, Pourquié O. Cellular and molecular control of vertebrate somitogenesis. Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol 2024; 25:517-533. [PMID: 38418851 DOI: 10.1038/s41580-024-00709-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 01/30/2024] [Indexed: 03/02/2024]
Abstract
Segmentation is a fundamental feature of the vertebrate body plan. This metameric organization is first implemented by somitogenesis in the early embryo, when paired epithelial blocks called somites are rhythmically formed to flank the neural tube. Recent advances in in vitro models have offered new opportunities to elucidate the mechanisms that underlie somitogenesis. Notably, models derived from human pluripotent stem cells introduced an efficient proxy for studying this process during human development. In this Review, we summarize the current understanding of somitogenesis gained from both in vivo studies and in vitro studies. We deconstruct the spatiotemporal dynamics of somitogenesis into four distinct modules: dynamic events in the presomitic mesoderm, segmental determination, somite anteroposterior polarity patterning, and epithelial morphogenesis. We first focus on the segmentation clock, as well as signalling and metabolic gradients along the tissue, before discussing the clock and wavefront and other models that account for segmental determination. We then detail the molecular and cellular mechanisms of anteroposterior polarity patterning and somite epithelialization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuchuan Miao
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
- Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
| | - Olivier Pourquié
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
- Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
- Harvard Stem Cell Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA.
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2
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Lázaro J, Costanzo M, Sanaki-Matsumiya M, Girardot C, Hayashi M, Hayashi K, Diecke S, Hildebrandt TB, Lazzari G, Wu J, Petkov S, Behr R, Trivedi V, Matsuda M, Ebisuya M. A stem cell zoo uncovers intracellular scaling of developmental tempo across mammals. Cell Stem Cell 2023; 30:938-949.e7. [PMID: 37343565 PMCID: PMC10321541 DOI: 10.1016/j.stem.2023.05.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 32.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2022] [Revised: 04/03/2023] [Accepted: 05/25/2023] [Indexed: 06/23/2023]
Abstract
Differential speeds in biochemical reactions have been proposed to be responsible for the differences in developmental tempo between mice and humans. However, the underlying mechanism controlling the species-specific kinetics remains to be determined. Using in vitro differentiation of pluripotent stem cells, we recapitulated the segmentation clocks of diverse mammalian species varying in body weight and taxa: marmoset, rabbit, cattle, and rhinoceros. Together with mouse and human, the segmentation clock periods of the six species did not scale with the animal body weight, but with the embryogenesis length. The biochemical kinetics of the core clock gene HES7 displayed clear scaling with the species-specific segmentation clock period. However, the cellular metabolic rates did not show an evident correlation. Instead, genes involving biochemical reactions showed an expression pattern that scales with the segmentation clock period. Altogether, our stem cell zoo uncovered general scaling laws governing species-specific developmental tempo.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jorge Lázaro
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) Barcelona, Dr. Aiguader 88, 08003 Barcelona, Spain; Collaboration for joint PhD degree between EMBL and Heidelberg University, Faculty of Biosciences, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Maria Costanzo
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) Barcelona, Dr. Aiguader 88, 08003 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Marina Sanaki-Matsumiya
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) Barcelona, Dr. Aiguader 88, 08003 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Charles Girardot
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory, Genome Biology Unit, 69117 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Masafumi Hayashi
- Department of Genome Biology, Graduate School of Medicine, Osaka University, 2-2 Yamadaoka, Suita 565-0871, Osaka, Japan
| | - Katsuhiko Hayashi
- Department of Genome Biology, Graduate School of Medicine, Osaka University, 2-2 Yamadaoka, Suita 565-0871, Osaka, Japan
| | - Sebastian Diecke
- Technology Platform Pluripotent Stem Cells, Max-Delbrück-Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), 13125 Berlin, Germany
| | | | | | - Jun Wu
- Department of Molecular Biology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390-9148, USA; Hamon Center for Regenerative Science and Medicine, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390-9148, USA
| | - Stoyan Petkov
- Platform Degenerative Diseases, German Primate Center - Leibniz Institute for Primate Research, Kellnerweg 4, 37077 Göttingen, Germany; German Center for Cardiovascular Research (DZHK), Partner site Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Rüdiger Behr
- Platform Degenerative Diseases, German Primate Center - Leibniz Institute for Primate Research, Kellnerweg 4, 37077 Göttingen, Germany; German Center for Cardiovascular Research (DZHK), Partner site Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Vikas Trivedi
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) Barcelona, Dr. Aiguader 88, 08003 Barcelona, Spain.
| | - Mitsuhiro Matsuda
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) Barcelona, Dr. Aiguader 88, 08003 Barcelona, Spain.
| | - Miki Ebisuya
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) Barcelona, Dr. Aiguader 88, 08003 Barcelona, Spain; Cluster of Excellence Physics of Life, TU Dresden, Dresden, Germany.
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3
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Kageyama R, Isomura A, Shimojo H. Biological Significance of the Coupling Delay in Synchronized Oscillations. Physiology (Bethesda) 2023; 38:0. [PMID: 36256636 DOI: 10.1152/physiol.00023.2022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
The significance of the coupling delay, which is the time required for interactions between coupled oscillators, in various oscillatory dynamics has been investigated mathematically for more than three decades, but its biological significance has been revealed only recently. In the segmentation clock, which regulates the periodic formation of somites in embryos, Hes7 expression oscillates synchronously between neighboring presomitic mesoderm (PSM) cells, and this synchronized oscillation is controlled by Notch signaling-mediated coupling between PSM cells. Recent studies have shown that inappropriate coupling delays dampen and desynchronize Hes7 oscillations, as simulated mathematically, leading to the severe fusion of somites and somite-derived tissues such as the vertebrae and ribs. These results indicate the biological significance of the coupling delay in synchronized Hes7 oscillations in the segmentation clock. The recent development of an in vitro PSM-like system will facilitate the detailed analysis of the coupling delay in synchronized oscillations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryoichiro Kageyama
- RIKEN Center for Brain Science, Wako, Japan.,Institute for Frontier Life and Medical Sciences, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan.,Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto, Japan.,Institute for Integrated Cell-Material Sciences, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Akihiro Isomura
- Institute for Frontier Life and Medical Sciences, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan.,Institute for Integrated Cell-Material Sciences, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan.,PRESTO, Japan Science and Technology Agency, Saitama, Japan
| | - Hiromi Shimojo
- Institute for Frontier Life and Medical Sciences, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan.,Graduate School of Frontier Biosciences, Osaka University, Suita, Osaka, Japan
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4
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Miao Y, Djeffal Y, De Simone A, Zhu K, Lee JG, Lu Z, Silberfeld A, Rao J, Tarazona OA, Mongera A, Rigoni P, Diaz-Cuadros M, Song LMS, Di Talia S, Pourquié O. Reconstruction and deconstruction of human somitogenesis in vitro. Nature 2023; 614:500-508. [PMID: 36543321 PMCID: PMC10018515 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-022-05655-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 34.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2022] [Accepted: 12/13/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
The vertebrate body displays a segmental organization that is most conspicuous in the periodic organization of the vertebral column and peripheral nerves. This metameric organization is first implemented when somites, which contain the precursors of skeletal muscles and vertebrae, are rhythmically generated from the presomitic mesoderm. Somites then become subdivided into anterior and posterior compartments that are essential for vertebral formation and segmental patterning of the peripheral nervous system1-4. How this key somitic subdivision is established remains poorly understood. Here we introduce three-dimensional culture systems of human pluripotent stem cells called somitoids and segmentoids, which recapitulate the formation of somite-like structures with anteroposterior identity. We identify a key function of the segmentation clock in converting temporal rhythmicity into the spatial regularity of anterior and posterior somitic compartments. We show that an initial 'salt and pepper' expression of the segmentation gene MESP2 in the newly formed segment is transformed into compartments of anterior and posterior identity through an active cell-sorting mechanism. Our research demonstrates that the major patterning modules that are involved in somitogenesis, including the clock and wavefront, anteroposterior polarity patterning and somite epithelialization, can be dissociated and operate independently in our in vitro systems. Together, we define a framework for the symmetry-breaking process that initiates somite polarity patterning. Our work provides a platform for decoding general principles of somitogenesis and advancing knowledge of human development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuchuan Miao
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Yannis Djeffal
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | | | - Kongju Zhu
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Jong Gwan Lee
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Ziqi Lu
- Department of Cell Biology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Andrew Silberfeld
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Jyoti Rao
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Oscar A Tarazona
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Alessandro Mongera
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Pietro Rigoni
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Margarete Diaz-Cuadros
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Laura Min Sook Song
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Stefano Di Talia
- Department of Cell Biology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Olivier Pourquié
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
- Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
- Harvard Stem Cell Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA.
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5
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Abstract
The segmented body plan of vertebrates is established during somitogenesis, a well-studied process in model organisms; however, the details of this process in humans remain largely unknown owing to ethical and technical limitations. Despite recent advances with pluripotent stem cell-based approaches1-5, models that robustly recapitulate human somitogenesis in both space and time remain scarce. Here we introduce a pluripotent stem cell-derived mesoderm-based 3D model of human segmentation and somitogenesis-which we termed 'axioloid'-that captures accurately the oscillatory dynamics of the segmentation clock and the morphological and molecular characteristics of sequential somite formation in vitro. Axioloids show proper rostrocaudal patterning of forming segments and robust anterior-posterior FGF-WNT signalling gradients and retinoic acid signalling components. We identify an unexpected critical role of retinoic acid signalling in the stabilization of forming segments, indicating distinct, but also synergistic effects of retinoic acid and extracellular matrix on the formation and epithelialization of somites. Comparative analysis demonstrates marked similarities of axioloids to the human embryo, further validated by the presence of a Hox code in axioloids. Finally, we demonstrate the utility of axioloids for studying the pathogenesis of human congenital spine diseases using induced pluripotent stem cells with mutations in HES7 and MESP2. Our results indicate that axioloids represent a promising platform for the study of axial development and disease in humans.
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6
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Diaz-Cuadros M, Miettinen TP, Skinner OS, Sheedy D, Díaz-García CM, Gapon S, Hubaud A, Yellen G, Manalis SR, Oldham WM, Pourquié O. Metabolic regulation of species-specific developmental rates. Nature 2023; 613:550-557. [PMID: 36599986 PMCID: PMC9944513 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-022-05574-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 45.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2021] [Accepted: 11/18/2022] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
Animals display substantial inter-species variation in the rate of embryonic development despite a broad conservation of the overall sequence of developmental events. Differences in biochemical reaction rates, including the rates of protein production and degradation, are thought to be responsible for species-specific rates of development1-3. However, the cause of differential biochemical reaction rates between species remains unknown. Here, using pluripotent stem cells, we have established an in vitro system that recapitulates the twofold difference in developmental rate between mouse and human embryos. This system provides a quantitative measure of developmental speed as revealed by the period of the segmentation clock, a molecular oscillator associated with the rhythmic production of vertebral precursors. Using this system, we show that mass-specific metabolic rates scale with the developmental rate and are therefore higher in mouse cells than in human cells. Reducing these metabolic rates by inhibiting the electron transport chain slowed down the segmentation clock by impairing the cellular NAD+/NADH redox balance and, further downstream, lowering the global rate of protein synthesis. Conversely, increasing the NAD+/NADH ratio in human cells by overexpression of the Lactobacillus brevis NADH oxidase LbNOX increased the translation rate and accelerated the segmentation clock. These findings represent a starting point for the manipulation of developmental rate, with multiple translational applications including accelerating the differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells for disease modelling and cell-based therapies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Margarete Diaz-Cuadros
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
- Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
- Department of Molecular Biology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
| | - Teemu P Miettinen
- Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Owen S Skinner
- Department of Molecular Biology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Systems Biology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Broad Institute, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Dylan Sheedy
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Carlos Manlio Díaz-García
- Department of Neurobiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK, USA
| | - Svetlana Gapon
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Alexis Hubaud
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Gary Yellen
- Department of Neurobiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Scott R Manalis
- Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Biological Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - William M Oldham
- Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Olivier Pourquié
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
- Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
- Harvard Stem Cell Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA.
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7
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25 years of the segmentation clock gene. Nature 2022; 611:671-673. [PMID: 36352110 DOI: 10.1038/d41586-022-03562-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
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8
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Carraco G, Martins-Jesus AP, Andrade RP. The vertebrate Embryo Clock: Common players dancing to a different beat. Front Cell Dev Biol 2022; 10:944016. [PMID: 36036002 PMCID: PMC9403190 DOI: 10.3389/fcell.2022.944016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/14/2022] [Accepted: 07/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Vertebrate embryo somitogenesis is the earliest morphological manifestation of the characteristic patterned structure of the adult axial skeleton. Pairs of somites flanking the neural tube are formed periodically during early development, and the molecular mechanisms in temporal control of this early patterning event have been thoroughly studied. The discovery of a molecular Embryo Clock (EC) underlying the periodicity of somite formation shed light on the importance of gene expression dynamics for pattern formation. The EC is now known to be present in all vertebrate organisms studied and this mechanism was also described in limb development and stem cell differentiation. An outstanding question, however, remains unanswered: what sets the different EC paces observed in different organisms and tissues? This review aims to summarize the available knowledge regarding the pace of the EC, its regulation and experimental manipulation and to expose new questions that might help shed light on what is still to unveil.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gil Carraco
- ABC-RI, Algarve Biomedical Center Research Institute, Faro, Portugal
- Faculdade de Medicina e Ciências Biomédicas (FMCB), Universidade do Algarve, Campus de Gambelas, Faro, Portugal
| | | | - Raquel P. Andrade
- ABC-RI, Algarve Biomedical Center Research Institute, Faro, Portugal
- Faculdade de Medicina e Ciências Biomédicas (FMCB), Universidade do Algarve, Campus de Gambelas, Faro, Portugal
- Champalimaud Research Program, Champalimaud Center for the Unknown, Lisbon, Portugal
- *Correspondence: Raquel P. Andrade,
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9
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Live imaging approach of dynamic multicellular responses in ERK signaling during vertebrate tissue development. Biochem J 2022; 479:129-143. [PMID: 35050327 PMCID: PMC8883488 DOI: 10.1042/bcj20210557] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2021] [Revised: 12/28/2021] [Accepted: 01/05/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
The chemical and mechanical responses of cells via the exchange of information during growth and development result in the formation of biological tissues. Information processing within the cells through the signaling pathways and networks inherent to the constituent cells has been well-studied. However, the cell signaling mechanisms responsible for generating dynamic multicellular responses in developing tissues remain unclear. Here, I review the dynamic multicellular response systems during the development and growth of vertebrate tissues based on the extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) pathway. First, an overview of the function of the ERK signaling network in cells is provided, followed by descriptions of biosensors essential for live imaging of the quantification of ERK activity in tissues. Then adducing four examples, I highlight the contribution of live imaging techniques for studying the involvement of spatio-temporal patterns of ERK activity change in tissue development and growth. In addition, theoretical implications of ERK signaling are also discussed from the viewpoint of dynamic systems. This review might help in understanding ERK-mediated dynamic multicellular responses and tissue morphogenesis.
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10
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Okada H, Saga Y. Repurposing of the enhancer-promoter communication underlies the compensation of Mesp2 by Mesp1. PLoS Genet 2022; 18:e1010000. [PMID: 35025872 PMCID: PMC8791502 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1010000] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2021] [Revised: 01/26/2022] [Accepted: 12/17/2021] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Organisms are inherently equipped with buffering systems against genetic perturbations. Genetic compensation, the compensatory response by upregulating another gene or genes, is one such buffering mechanism. Recently, a well-conserved compensatory mechanism was proposed: transcriptional adaptation of homologs under the nonsense-mediated mRNA decay pathways. However, this model cannot explain the onset of all compensatory events. We report a novel genetic compensation mechanism operating over the Mesp gene locus. Mesp1 and Mesp2 are paralogs located adjacently in the genome. Mesp2 loss is partially rescued by Mesp1 upregulation in the presomitic mesoderm (PSM). Using a cultured PSM induction system, we reproduced the compensatory response in vitro and found that the Mesp2-enhancer is required to promote Mesp1. We revealed that the Mesp2-enhancer directly interacts with the Mesp1 promoter, thereby upregulating Mesp1 expression upon the loss of Mesp2. Of note, this interaction is established by genomic arrangement upon PSM development independently of Mesp2 disruption. We propose that the repurposing of this established enhancer-promoter communication is the mechanism underlying this compensatory response for the upregulation of the adjacent gene. Genetic compensation, the compensatory response by upregulating another gene or genes, is one of the inherent mechanisms against gene disruption to confer cellular fitness. However, the regulatory mechanisms are largely unknown. Nonsense-mediated mutant mRNA degradation was recently proposed as a conserved mechanism across species to upregulate homologous genes to compensate for a disrupted gene, but this cannot explain compensation events with no mutant mRNA. This study investigated the compensation mechanism operating over adjacent paralogs, Mesp1 and Mesp2, in the genome. Mesp genes encode essential transcription factors in the presomitic mesoderm for development. In general, an enhancer is considered to activate a target gene when it physically interacts with the target. The communication of the Mesp2-enhancer with the Mesp1 promoter is established upon differentiation of the presomitic mesoderm, but this communication activates Mesp1 only when Mesp2 is disrupted, leading to compensation. We revealed a novel compensation mechanism depending on the repurposing of this enhancer-promoter communication by gene disruption. Our study also provides new insight into transcriptional regulation by providing the concept that an enhancer changes its target even among its physically interacting genes in a context-dependent manner.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hajime Okada
- Department of Gene Function and Phenomics, National Institute of Genetics, Mishima, Japan
| | - Yumiko Saga
- Department of Gene Function and Phenomics, National Institute of Genetics, Mishima, Japan
- Department of Genetics, School of Life Science, The Graduate University for Advised Studies (SOKENDAI), Mishima, Japan
- Department of Biological Sciences, Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
- * E-mail:
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11
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Umemura Y, Koike N, Tsuchiya Y, Watanabe H, Kondoh G, Kageyama R, Yagita K. Circadian key component CLOCK/BMAL1 interferes with segmentation clock in mouse embryonic organoids. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2022; 119:e2114083119. [PMID: 34930826 PMCID: PMC8746294 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2114083119] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 11/16/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
In mammals, circadian clocks are strictly suppressed during early embryonic stages, as well as in pluripotent stem cells, by the lack of CLOCK/BMAL1-mediated circadian feedback loops. During ontogenesis, the innate circadian clocks emerge gradually at a late developmental stage, and with these, the circadian temporal order is invested in each cell level throughout a body. Meanwhile, in the early developmental stage, a segmented body plan is essential for an intact developmental process, and somitogenesis is controlled by another cell-autonomous oscillator, the segmentation clock, in the posterior presomitic mesoderm (PSM). In the present study, focusing upon the interaction between circadian key components and the segmentation clock, we investigated the effect of the CLOCK/BMAL1 on the segmentation clock Hes7 oscillation, revealing that the expression of functional CLOCK/BMAL1 severely interferes with the ultradian rhythm of segmentation clock in induced PSM and gastruloids. RNA sequencing analysis implied that the premature expression of CLOCK/BMAL1 affects the Hes7 transcription and its regulatory pathways. These results suggest that the suppression of CLOCK/BMAL1-mediated transcriptional regulation during the somitogenesis may be inevitable for intact mammalian development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yasuhiro Umemura
- Department of Physiology and Systems Bioscience, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto 602-8566, Japan
| | - Nobuya Koike
- Department of Physiology and Systems Bioscience, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto 602-8566, Japan
| | - Yoshiki Tsuchiya
- Department of Physiology and Systems Bioscience, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto 602-8566, Japan
| | - Hitomi Watanabe
- Laboratory of Integrative Biological Science, Institute for Frontier Life and Medical Sciences, Kyoto University, Kyoto 606-8501, Japan
| | - Gen Kondoh
- Laboratory of Integrative Biological Science, Institute for Frontier Life and Medical Sciences, Kyoto University, Kyoto 606-8501, Japan
| | - Ryoichiro Kageyama
- Laboratory of Growth Regulation System, Institute for Frontier Life and Medical Sciences, Kyoto University, Kyoto 606-8507, Japan
| | - Kazuhiro Yagita
- Department of Physiology and Systems Bioscience, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto 602-8566, Japan;
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12
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Sanaki-Matsumiya M, Kageyama R. Time-Lapse Bioluminescence Imaging of Hes7 Expression In Vitro and Ex Vivo. Methods Mol Biol 2022; 2525:321-332. [PMID: 35836080 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-2473-9_25] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Somites are formed sequentially by the segmentation of the anterior parts of the presomitic mesoderm (PSM), and such periodical somite formation is crucial to ensure the proper vertebrae. In the mouse embryo, Hes7, a segmentation clock gene, controls this periodic event with new somites forming every 2 h. Hes7 oscillations are synchronized between neighboring PSM cells and propagate from the posterior to the anterior PSM in the form of traveling waves. However, the exact mechanisms that generate these oscillatory dynamics and control synchronization are still unclear. Given that the half-life of Hes7 is too short to be monitored with most fluorescent proteins, time-lapse bioluminescence imaging (BLI) is a suitable tool to monitor the chronological Hes7 expression dynamics. In this chapter, we introduce a ubiquitinated luciferase reporter which enables the visualization of Hes7 expression dynamics with high temporal and spatial resolution in living cells and tissues.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marina Sanaki-Matsumiya
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL), Barcelona, Spain.
- Institute for Frontier Life and Medical Sciences, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan.
| | - Ryoichiro Kageyama
- Institute for Frontier Life and Medical Sciences, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan.
- Institute for Integrated Cell-Material Sciences (iCeMS), Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan.
- RIKEN Center for Brain Science, Wako, Japan.
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13
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Diaz-Cuadros M, Pourquié O, El-Sherif E. Patterning with clocks and genetic cascades: Segmentation and regionalization of vertebrate versus insect body plans. PLoS Genet 2021; 17:e1009812. [PMID: 34648490 PMCID: PMC8516289 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1009812] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Oscillatory and sequential processes have been implicated in the spatial patterning of many embryonic tissues. For example, molecular clocks delimit segmental boundaries in vertebrates and insects and mediate lateral root formation in plants, whereas sequential gene activities are involved in the specification of regional identities of insect neuroblasts, vertebrate neural tube, vertebrate limb, and insect and vertebrate body axes. These processes take place in various tissues and organisms, and, hence, raise the question of what common themes and strategies they share. In this article, we review 2 processes that rely on the spatial regulation of periodic and sequential gene activities: segmentation and regionalization of the anterior-posterior (AP) axis of animal body plans. We study these processes in species that belong to 2 different phyla: vertebrates and insects. By contrasting 2 different processes (segmentation and regionalization) in species that belong to 2 distantly related phyla (arthropods and vertebrates), we elucidate the deep logic of patterning by oscillatory and sequential gene activities. Furthermore, in some of these organisms (e.g., the fruit fly Drosophila), a mode of AP patterning has evolved that seems not to overtly rely on oscillations or sequential gene activities, providing an opportunity to study the evolution of pattern formation mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Margarete Diaz-Cuadros
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
- Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Olivier Pourquié
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
- Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
- Harvard Stem Cell Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Ezzat El-Sherif
- Division of Developmental Biology, Department of Biology, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Erlangen, Germany
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14
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Abstract
Arthropod segmentation and vertebrate somitogenesis are leading fields in the experimental and theoretical interrogation of developmental patterning. However, despite the sophistication of current research, basic conceptual issues remain unresolved. These include: (i) the mechanistic origins of spatial organization within the segment addition zone (SAZ); (ii) the mechanistic origins of segment polarization; (iii) the mechanistic origins of axial variation; and (iv) the evolutionary origins of simultaneous patterning. Here, I explore these problems using coarse-grained models of cross-regulating dynamical processes. In the morphogenetic framework of a row of cells undergoing axial elongation, I simulate interactions between an 'oscillator', a 'switch' and up to three 'timers', successfully reproducing essential patterning behaviours of segmenting systems. By comparing the output of these largely cell-autonomous models to variants that incorporate positional information, I find that scaling relationships, wave patterns and patterning dynamics all depend on whether the SAZ is regulated by temporal or spatial information. I also identify three mechanisms for polarizing oscillator output, all of which functionally implicate the oscillator frequency profile. Finally, I demonstrate significant dynamical and regulatory continuity between sequential and simultaneous modes of segmentation. I discuss these results in the context of the experimental literature.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erik Clark
- Department of Systems Biology, Harvard Medical School, 210 Longwood Ave, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Trinity College Cambridge, University of Cambridge, Trinity Street, Cambridge CB2 1TQ, UK
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15
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16
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Brown J, Barry C, Schmitz MT, Argus C, Bolin JM, Schwartz MP, Van Aartsen A, Steill J, Swanson S, Stewart R, Thomson JA, Kendziorski C. Interspecies chimeric conditions affect the developmental rate of human pluripotent stem cells. PLoS Comput Biol 2021; 17:e1008778. [PMID: 33647016 PMCID: PMC7951976 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1008778] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2020] [Revised: 03/11/2021] [Accepted: 02/08/2021] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Human pluripotent stem cells hold significant promise for regenerative medicine. However, long differentiation protocols and immature characteristics of stem cell-derived cell types remain challenges to the development of many therapeutic applications. In contrast to the slow differentiation of human stem cells in vitro that mirrors a nine-month gestation period, mouse stem cells develop according to a much faster three-week gestation timeline. Here, we tested if co-differentiation with mouse pluripotent stem cells could accelerate the differentiation speed of human embryonic stem cells. Following a six-week RNA-sequencing time course of neural differentiation, we identified 929 human genes that were upregulated earlier and 535 genes that exhibited earlier peaked expression profiles in chimeric cell cultures than in human cell cultures alone. Genes with accelerated upregulation were significantly enriched in Gene Ontology terms associated with neurogenesis, neuron differentiation and maturation, and synapse signaling. Moreover, chimeric mixed samples correlated with in utero human embryonic samples earlier than human cells alone, and acceleration was dose-dependent on human-mouse co-culture ratios. The altered gene expression patterns and developmental rates described in this report have implications for accelerating human stem cell differentiation and the use of interspecies chimeric embryos in developing human organs for transplantation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jared Brown
- Department of Statistics, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America
- * E-mail: (JB); (CK)
| | - Christopher Barry
- Morgridge Institute for Research, Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America
| | - Matthew T. Schmitz
- Morgridge Institute for Research, Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America
| | - Cara Argus
- Morgridge Institute for Research, Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America
| | - Jennifer M. Bolin
- Morgridge Institute for Research, Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America
| | - Michael P. Schwartz
- NSF Center for Sustainable Nanotechnology, Department of Chemistry, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America
| | - Amy Van Aartsen
- Morgridge Institute for Research, Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America
| | - John Steill
- Morgridge Institute for Research, Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America
| | - Scott Swanson
- Morgridge Institute for Research, Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America
| | - Ron Stewart
- Morgridge Institute for Research, Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America
| | - James A. Thomson
- Morgridge Institute for Research, Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America
- Department of Cell and Regenerative Biology, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America
- Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, California, United States of America
| | - Christina Kendziorski
- Department of Biostatistics and Medical Informatics, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America
- * E-mail: (JB); (CK)
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17
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Yoshioka-Kobayashi K, Kageyama R. Imaging and manipulating the segmentation clock. Cell Mol Life Sci 2021; 78:1221-1231. [PMID: 33015720 PMCID: PMC11072046 DOI: 10.1007/s00018-020-03655-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/24/2020] [Revised: 08/21/2020] [Accepted: 09/22/2020] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
During embryogenesis, the processes that control how cells differentiate and interact to form particular tissues and organs with precise timing and shape are of fundamental importance. One prominent example of such processes is vertebrate somitogenesis, which is governed by a molecular oscillator called the segmentation clock. The segmentation clock system is initiated in the presomitic mesoderm in which a set of genes and signaling pathways exhibit coordinated spatiotemporal dynamics to establish regularly spaced boundaries along the body axis; these boundaries provide a blueprint for the development of segment-like structures such as spines and skeletal muscles. The highly complex and dynamic nature of this in vivo event and the design principles and their regulation in both normal and abnormal embryogenesis are not fully understood. Recently, live-imaging has been used to quantitatively analyze the dynamics of selected components of the circuit, particularly in combination with well-designed experiments to perturb the system. Here, we review recent progress from studies using live imaging and manipulation, including attempts to recapitulate the segmentation clock in vitro. In combination with mathematical modeling, these techniques have become essential for disclosing novel aspects of the clock.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kumiko Yoshioka-Kobayashi
- Institute for Frontier Life and Medical Sciences, Kyoto University, Kyoto, 606-8507, Japan.
- Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, Kyoto, 606-8501, Japan.
- Institute for the Advanced Study of Human Biology (ASHBi), Kyoto University, Kyoto, 606-8501, Japan.
| | - Ryoichiro Kageyama
- Institute for Frontier Life and Medical Sciences, Kyoto University, Kyoto, 606-8507, Japan.
- Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, Kyoto, 606-8501, Japan.
- Graduate School of Biostudies, Kyoto University, Kyoto, 606-8501, Japan.
- Institute for Integrated Cell-Material Sciences, Kyoto University, Kyoto, 606-8501, Japan.
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18
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Diaz‐Cuadros M, Pourquie O. In vitro systems: A new window to the segmentation clock. Dev Growth Differ 2021; 63:140-153. [PMID: 33460448 PMCID: PMC8048467 DOI: 10.1111/dgd.12710] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/01/2020] [Revised: 01/12/2021] [Accepted: 01/13/2021] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
Abstract
Segmental organization of the vertebrate body plan is established by the segmentation clock, a molecular oscillator that controls the periodicity of somite formation. Given the dynamic nature of the segmentation clock, in vivo studies in vertebrate embryos pose technical challenges. As an alternative, simpler models of the segmentation clock based on primary explants and pluripotent stem cells have recently been developed. These ex vivo and in vitro systems enable more quantitative analysis of oscillatory properties and expand the experimental repertoire applicable to the segmentation clock. Crucially, by eliminating the need for model organisms, in vitro models allow us to study the segmentation clock in new species, including our own. The human oscillator was recently recapitulated using induced pluripotent stem cells, providing a window into human development. Certainly, a combination of in vivo and in vitro work holds the most promising potential to unravel the mechanisms behind vertebrate segmentation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Margarete Diaz‐Cuadros
- Department of GeneticsHarvard Medical SchoolBostonMassachusettsUSA
- Department of PathologyBrigham and Women’s HospitalBostonMassachusettsUSA
| | - Olivier Pourquie
- Department of GeneticsHarvard Medical SchoolBostonMassachusettsUSA
- Department of PathologyBrigham and Women’s HospitalBostonMassachusettsUSA
- Harvard Stem Cell InstituteBostonMassachusettsUSA
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19
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Matsuda M, Hayashi H, Garcia-Ojalvo J, Yoshioka-Kobayashi K, Kageyama R, Yamanaka Y, Ikeya M, Toguchida J, Alev C, Ebisuya M. Species-specific segmentation clock periods are due to differential biochemical reaction speeds. Science 2020; 369:1450-1455. [PMID: 32943519 DOI: 10.1126/science.aba7668] [Citation(s) in RCA: 144] [Impact Index Per Article: 36.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/03/2020] [Accepted: 07/17/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Although mechanisms of embryonic development are similar between mice and humans, the time scale is generally slower in humans. To investigate these interspecies differences in development, we recapitulate murine and human segmentation clocks that display 2- to 3-hour and 5- to 6-hour oscillation periods, respectively. Our interspecies genome-swapping analyses indicate that the period difference is not due to sequence differences in the HES7 locus, the core gene of the segmentation clock. Instead, we demonstrate that multiple biochemical reactions of HES7, including the degradation and expression delays, are slower in human cells than they are in mouse cells. With the measured biochemical parameters, our mathematical model accounts for the two- to threefold period difference between the species. We propose that cell-autonomous differences in biochemical reaction speeds underlie temporal differences in development between species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mitsuhiro Matsuda
- RIKEN Center for Biosystems Dynamics Research (RIKEN BDR), 2-2-3 Minatojima-minamimachi, Chuo-ku, 650-0047 Kobe, Japan.,European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) Barcelona, Dr. Aiguader 88, 08003 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Hanako Hayashi
- RIKEN Center for Biosystems Dynamics Research (RIKEN BDR), 2-2-3 Minatojima-minamimachi, Chuo-ku, 650-0047 Kobe, Japan
| | - Jordi Garcia-Ojalvo
- Department of Experimental and Health Sciences, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Dr. Aiguader 88, 08003 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Kumiko Yoshioka-Kobayashi
- Institute for Frontier Life and Medical Sciences, Kyoto University, Shogoin-Kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, 606-8507 Kyoto, Japan
| | - Ryoichiro Kageyama
- Institute for Frontier Life and Medical Sciences, Kyoto University, Shogoin-Kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, 606-8507 Kyoto, Japan.,Institute for Integrated Cell-Material Sciences, Kyoto University, Yoshida Ushinomiya-cho, Sakyo-ku, 606-8501 Kyoto, Japan
| | - Yoshihiro Yamanaka
- Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, 53 Shogoin-Kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, 606-8507 Kyoto, Japan.,Institute for the Advanced Study of Human Biology (ASHBi), Kyoto University, Yoshida-Konoe-cho, Sakyo-ku, 606-8501 Kyoto, Japan
| | - Makoto Ikeya
- Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, 53 Shogoin-Kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, 606-8507 Kyoto, Japan
| | - Junya Toguchida
- Institute for Frontier Life and Medical Sciences, Kyoto University, Shogoin-Kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, 606-8507 Kyoto, Japan.,Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, 53 Shogoin-Kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, 606-8507 Kyoto, Japan
| | - Cantas Alev
- Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, 53 Shogoin-Kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, 606-8507 Kyoto, Japan.,Institute for the Advanced Study of Human Biology (ASHBi), Kyoto University, Yoshida-Konoe-cho, Sakyo-ku, 606-8501 Kyoto, Japan
| | - Miki Ebisuya
- RIKEN Center for Biosystems Dynamics Research (RIKEN BDR), 2-2-3 Minatojima-minamimachi, Chuo-ku, 650-0047 Kobe, Japan. .,European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) Barcelona, Dr. Aiguader 88, 08003 Barcelona, Spain
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20
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An In Vitro Human Segmentation Clock Model Derived from Embryonic Stem Cells. Cell Rep 2020; 28:2247-2255.e5. [PMID: 31461642 PMCID: PMC6814198 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2019.07.090] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2019] [Revised: 07/09/2019] [Accepted: 07/24/2019] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Defects in somitogenesis result in vertebral malformations at birth known as spondylocostal dysostosis (SCDO). Somites are formed with a species-specific periodicity controlled by the “segmentation clock,” which comprises a group of oscillatory genes in the presomitic mesoderm. Here, we report that a segmentation clock model derived from human embryonic stem cells shows many hallmarks of the mammalian segmentation clock in vivo, including a dependence on the NOTCH and WNT signaling pathways. The gene expression oscillations are highly synchronized, displaying a periodicity specific to the human clock. Introduction of a point of mutation into HES7, a specific mutation previously associated with clinical SCDO, eliminated clock gene oscillations, successfully reproducing the defects in the segmentation clock. Thus, we provide a model for studying the previously inaccessible human segmentation clock to better understand the mechanisms contributing to congenital skeletal defects. The segmentation clock is a molecular oscillator regulating the tempo of somite formation in a species-specific manner. Chu et al. report an embryonic-stem-cell-derived model system displaying a human-specific gene oscillation periodicity, which can shed light on human somitogenesis and model skeletal developmental disorders.
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21
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Oates AC. Waiting on the Fringe: cell autonomy and signaling delays in segmentation clocks. Curr Opin Genet Dev 2020; 63:61-70. [PMID: 32505051 DOI: 10.1016/j.gde.2020.04.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/16/2020] [Revised: 04/19/2020] [Accepted: 04/23/2020] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
The rhythmic and sequential segmentation of the vertebrate body axis into somites during embryogenesis is governed by a multicellular, oscillatory patterning system called the segmentation clock. Despite many overt similarities between vertebrates, differences in genetic and dynamic regulation have been reported, raising intriguing questions about the evolution and conservation of this fundamental patterning process. Recent studies have brought insights into two important and related issues: (1) whether individual cells of segmentation clocks are autonomous oscillators or require cell-cell communication for their rhythm; and (2) the role of delays in the cell-cell communication that synchronizes the population of genetic oscillators. Although molecular details differ between species, conservation may exist at the level of the dynamics, hinting at rules for evolutionary trajectories in the system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew C Oates
- Institute of Bioengineering, School of Life Sciences and School of Engineering, Ecole Polytechnique Fédéral de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-1015, Switzerland.
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22
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Matsuda M, Yamanaka Y, Uemura M, Osawa M, Saito MK, Nagahashi A, Nishio M, Guo L, Ikegawa S, Sakurai S, Kihara S, Maurissen TL, Nakamura M, Matsumoto T, Yoshitomi H, Ikeya M, Kawakami N, Yamamoto T, Woltjen K, Ebisuya M, Toguchida J, Alev C. Recapitulating the human segmentation clock with pluripotent stem cells. Nature 2020; 580:124-129. [PMID: 32238941 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-020-2144-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 119] [Impact Index Per Article: 29.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2018] [Accepted: 02/20/2020] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Pluripotent stem cells are increasingly used to model different aspects of embryogenesis and organ formation1. Despite recent advances in in vitro induction of major mesodermal lineages and cell types2,3, experimental model systems that can recapitulate more complex features of human mesoderm development and patterning are largely missing. Here we used induced pluripotent stem cells for the stepwise in vitro induction of presomitic mesoderm and its derivatives to model distinct aspects of human somitogenesis. We focused initially on modelling the human segmentation clock, a major biological concept believed to underlie the rhythmic and controlled emergence of somites, which give rise to the segmental pattern of the vertebrate axial skeleton. We observed oscillatory expression of core segmentation clock genes, including HES7 and DKK1, determined the period of the human segmentation clock to be around five hours, and demonstrated the presence of dynamic travelling-wave-like gene expression in in vitro-induced human presomitic mesoderm. Furthermore, we identified and compared oscillatory genes in human and mouse presomitic mesoderm derived from pluripotent stem cells, which revealed species-specific and shared molecular components and pathways associated with the putative mouse and human segmentation clocks. Using CRISPR-Cas9-based genome editing technology, we then targeted genes for which mutations in patients with segmentation defects of the vertebrae, such as spondylocostal dysostosis, have been reported (HES7, LFNG, DLL3 and MESP2). Subsequent analysis of patient-like and patient-derived induced pluripotent stem cells revealed gene-specific alterations in oscillation, synchronization or differentiation properties. Our findings provide insights into the human segmentation clock as well as diseases associated with human axial skeletogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mitsuhiro Matsuda
- Laboratory for Reconstitutive Developmental Biology, RIKEN Center for Biosystems Dynamics Research (RIKEN BDR), Kobe, Japan.,European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Yoshihiro Yamanaka
- Department of Cell Growth and Differentiation, Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan.,Institute for the Advanced Study of Human Biology (ASHBi), Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Maya Uemura
- Department of Cell Growth and Differentiation, Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan.,Department of Regeneration Science and Engineering, Institute for Frontier Life and Medical Sciences, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Mitsujiro Osawa
- Department of Clinical Application, Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Megumu K Saito
- Department of Clinical Application, Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Ayako Nagahashi
- Department of Clinical Application, Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Megumi Nishio
- Department of Regeneration Science and Engineering, Institute for Frontier Life and Medical Sciences, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Long Guo
- Laboratory for Bone and Joint Diseases, RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences (RIKEN IMS), Tokyo, Japan
| | - Shiro Ikegawa
- Laboratory for Bone and Joint Diseases, RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences (RIKEN IMS), Tokyo, Japan
| | - Satoko Sakurai
- Department of Life Science Frontiers, Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Shunsuke Kihara
- Department of Fundamental Cell Technology, Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Thomas L Maurissen
- Department of Life Science Frontiers, Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Michiko Nakamura
- Department of Life Science Frontiers, Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Tomoko Matsumoto
- Department of Life Science Frontiers, Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Hiroyuki Yoshitomi
- Department of Cell Growth and Differentiation, Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan.,Department of Regeneration Science and Engineering, Institute for Frontier Life and Medical Sciences, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Makoto Ikeya
- Department of Life Science Frontiers, Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Noriaki Kawakami
- Department of Orthopedics and Spine Surgery, Meijo Hospital, Nagoya, Japan
| | - Takuya Yamamoto
- Institute for the Advanced Study of Human Biology (ASHBi), Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan.,Department of Life Science Frontiers, Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan.,AMED-CREST, AMED 1-7-1 Otemachi, Chiyodaku, Tokyo, Japan.,Medical-Risk Avoidance Based on iPS Cells Team, RIKEN Center for Advanced Intelligence Project (AIP), Kyoto, Japan
| | - Knut Woltjen
- Department of Life Science Frontiers, Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Miki Ebisuya
- Laboratory for Reconstitutive Developmental Biology, RIKEN Center for Biosystems Dynamics Research (RIKEN BDR), Kobe, Japan. .,European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.
| | - Junya Toguchida
- Department of Cell Growth and Differentiation, Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan.,Department of Regeneration Science and Engineering, Institute for Frontier Life and Medical Sciences, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Cantas Alev
- Department of Cell Growth and Differentiation, Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan. .,Institute for the Advanced Study of Human Biology (ASHBi), Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan.
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23
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Venzin OF, Oates AC. What are you synching about? Emerging complexity of Notch signaling in the segmentation clock. Dev Biol 2020; 460:40-54. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2019.06.024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2019] [Revised: 06/30/2019] [Accepted: 06/30/2019] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
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24
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van den Brink SC, Alemany A, van Batenburg V, Moris N, Blotenburg M, Vivié J, Baillie-Johnson P, Nichols J, Sonnen KF, Martinez Arias A, van Oudenaarden A. Single-cell and spatial transcriptomics reveal somitogenesis in gastruloids. Nature 2020; 582:405-409. [PMID: 32076263 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-020-2024-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 212] [Impact Index Per Article: 53.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/04/2018] [Accepted: 12/19/2019] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Abstract
Gastruloids are three-dimensional aggregates of embryonic stem cells that display key features of mammalian development after implantation, including germ-layer specification and axial organization1-3. To date, the expression pattern of only a small number of genes in gastruloids has been explored with microscopy, and the extent to which genome-wide expression patterns in gastruloids mimic those in embryos is unclear. Here we compare mouse gastruloids with mouse embryos using single-cell RNA sequencing and spatial transcriptomics. We identify various embryonic cell types that were not previously known to be present in gastruloids, and show that key regulators of somitogenesis are expressed similarly between embryos and gastruloids. Using live imaging, we show that the somitogenesis clock is active in gastruloids and has dynamics that resemble those in vivo. Because gastruloids can be grown in large quantities, we performed a small screen that revealed how reduced FGF signalling induces a short-tail phenotype in embryos. Finally, we demonstrate that embedding in Matrigel induces gastruloids to generate somites with the correct rostral-caudal patterning, which appear sequentially in an anterior-to-posterior direction over time. This study thus shows the power of gastruloids as a model system for exploring development and somitogenesis in vitro in a high-throughput manner.
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Affiliation(s)
- Susanne C van den Brink
- Oncode Institute, Hubrecht Institute-KNAW (Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences) and University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
| | - Anna Alemany
- Oncode Institute, Hubrecht Institute-KNAW (Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences) and University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Vincent van Batenburg
- Oncode Institute, Hubrecht Institute-KNAW (Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences) and University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Naomi Moris
- Department of Genetics, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Marloes Blotenburg
- Oncode Institute, Hubrecht Institute-KNAW (Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences) and University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Judith Vivié
- Oncode Institute, Hubrecht Institute-KNAW (Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences) and University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | | | - Jennifer Nichols
- Wellcome Trust-Medical Research Council Cambridge Stem Cell Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.,Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Katharina F Sonnen
- Hubrecht Institute-KNAW (Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences) and University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | | | - Alexander van Oudenaarden
- Oncode Institute, Hubrecht Institute-KNAW (Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences) and University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
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25
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Diaz-Cuadros M, Wagner DE, Budjan C, Hubaud A, Tarazona OA, Donelly S, Michaut A, Al Tanoury Z, Yoshioka-Kobayashi K, Niino Y, Kageyama R, Miyawaki A, Touboul J, Pourquié O. In vitro characterization of the human segmentation clock. Nature 2020; 580:113-118. [PMID: 31915384 PMCID: PMC7336868 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-019-1885-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 123] [Impact Index Per Article: 30.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2018] [Accepted: 11/05/2019] [Indexed: 12/03/2022]
Abstract
The segmental organization of the vertebral column is established early in embryogenesis when pairs of somites are rhythmically produced by the presomitic mesoderm (PSM). The tempo of somite formation is controlled by a molecular oscillator known as the segmentation clock1,2. While this oscillator has been well-characterized in model organisms1,2, whether a similar oscillator exists in humans remains unknown. Genetic analysis of patients with severe spine segmentation defects have implicated several human orthologs of cyclic genes associated with the mouse segmentation clock, suggesting that this oscillator might be conserved in humans3. Here we show that in vitro-derived human as well as mouse PSM cells4 recapitulate oscillations of the segmentation clock. Human PSM cells oscillate twice slower than mouse cells (5-hours vs. 2.5 hours), but are similarly regulated by FGF, Wnt, Notch and YAP5. Single cell RNA-sequencing reveals that mouse and human PSM cells in vitro follow a similar developmental trajectory to mouse PSM in vivo. Furthermore, we demonstrate that FGF signaling controls the phase and period of oscillations, expanding the role of this pathway beyond its classical interpretation in “Clock and Wavefront” models. Overall, our work identifying the human segmentation clock represents an important breakthrough for human developmental biology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Margarete Diaz-Cuadros
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.,Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Daniel E Wagner
- Department of Systems Biology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Christoph Budjan
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.,Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Alexis Hubaud
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.,Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Oscar A Tarazona
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.,Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Sophia Donelly
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.,Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Arthur Michaut
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.,Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Ziad Al Tanoury
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.,Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | | | - Yusuke Niino
- Laboratory for Cell Function and Dynamics, RIKEN Center for Brain Science, Saitama, Japan
| | - Ryoichiro Kageyama
- Institute for Frontier Life and Medical Sciences, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Atsushi Miyawaki
- Laboratory for Cell Function and Dynamics, RIKEN Center for Brain Science, Saitama, Japan
| | - Jonathan Touboul
- Department of Mathematics, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA, USA.,Volen National Center for Complex Systems, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA, USA
| | - Olivier Pourquié
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA. .,Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA. .,Harvard Stem Cell Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA.
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26
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Coupling delay controls synchronized oscillation in the segmentation clock. Nature 2020; 580:119-123. [PMID: 31915376 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-019-1882-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 74] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2018] [Accepted: 11/05/2019] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Individual cellular activities fluctuate but are constantly coordinated at the population level via cell-cell coupling. A notable example is the somite segmentation clock, in which the expression of clock genes (such as Hes7) oscillates in synchrony between the cells that comprise the presomitic mesoderm (PSM)1,2. This synchronization depends on the Notch signalling pathway; inhibiting this pathway desynchronizes oscillations, leading to somite fusion3-7. However, how Notch signalling regulates the synchronicity of HES7 oscillations is unknown. Here we establish a live-imaging system using a new fluorescent reporter (Achilles), which we fuse with HES7 to monitor synchronous oscillations in HES7 expression in the mouse PSM at a single-cell resolution. Wild-type cells can rapidly correct for phase fluctuations in HES7 oscillations, whereas the absence of the Notch modulator gene lunatic fringe (Lfng) leads to a loss of synchrony between PSM cells. Furthermore, HES7 oscillations are severely dampened in individual cells of Lfng-null PSM. However, when Lfng-null PSM cells were completely dissociated, the amplitude and periodicity of HES7 oscillations were almost normal, which suggests that LFNG is involved mostly in cell-cell coupling. Mixed cultures of control and Lfng-null PSM cells, and an optogenetic Notch signalling reporter assay, revealed that LFNG delays the signal-sending process of intercellular Notch signalling transmission. These results-together with mathematical modelling-raised the possibility that Lfng-null PSM cells shorten the coupling delay, thereby approaching a condition known as the oscillation or amplitude death of coupled oscillators8. Indeed, a small compound that lengthens the coupling delay partially rescues the amplitude and synchrony of HES7 oscillations in Lfng-null PSM cells. Our study reveals a delay control mechanism of the oscillatory networks involved in somite segmentation, and indicates that intercellular coupling with the correct delay is essential for synchronized oscillation.
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27
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Caspase-8, receptor-interacting protein kinase 1 (RIPK1), and RIPK3 regulate retinoic acid-induced cell differentiation and necroptosis. Cell Death Differ 2019; 27:1539-1553. [PMID: 31659279 PMCID: PMC7206185 DOI: 10.1038/s41418-019-0434-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2019] [Revised: 10/04/2019] [Accepted: 10/04/2019] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Among caspase family members, Caspase-8 is unique, with associated critical activities to induce and suppress death receptor-mediated apoptosis and necroptosis, respectively. Caspase-8 inhibits necroptosis by suppressing the function of receptor-interacting protein kinase 1 (RIPK1 or RIP1) and RIPK3 to activate mixed lineage kinase domain-like (MLKL). Disruption of Caspase-8 expression causes embryonic lethality in mice, which is rescued by depletion of either Ripk3 or Mlkl, indicating that the embryonic lethality is caused by activation of necroptosis. Here, we show that knockdown of Caspase-8 expression in embryoid bodies derived from ES cells markedly enhances retinoic acid (RA)-induced cell differentiation and necroptosis, both of which are dependent on Ripk1 and Ripk3; however, the enhancement of RA-induced cell differentiation is independent of Mlkl and necrosome formation. RA treatment obviously enhanced the expression of RA-specific target genes having the retinoic acid response element (RARE) in their promoter regions to induce cell differentiation, and induced marked expression of RIPK1, RIPK3, and MLKL to stimulate necroptosis. Caspase-8 knockdown induced RIPK1 and RIPK3 to translocate into the nucleus and to form a complex with RA receptor (RAR), and RAR interacting with RIPK1 and RIPK3 showed much stronger binding activity to RARE than RAR without RIPK1 or RIPK3. In Caspase-8-deficient as well as Caspase-8- and Mlkl-deficient mouse embryos, the expression of RA-specific target genes was obviously enhanced. Thus, Caspase-8, RIPK1, and RIPK3 regulate RA-induced cell differentiation and necroptosis both in vitro and in vivo.
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28
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Ebrahimkhani MR, Ebisuya M. Synthetic developmental biology: build and control multicellular systems. Curr Opin Chem Biol 2019; 52:9-15. [PMID: 31102790 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2019.04.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2019] [Revised: 04/03/2019] [Accepted: 04/09/2019] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
Synthetic biology offers a bottom-up engineering approach that intends to understand complex systems via design-build-test cycles. Embryonic development comprises complex processes that originate at the level of gene regulatory networks in a cell and emerge into collective cellular behaviors with multicellular forms and functions. Here, we review synthetic biology approaches to development that involve building de novo developmental trajectories or engineering control in stem cell-derived multicellular systems. The field of synthetic developmental biology is rapidly growing with the help of recent advances in artificial gene circuits, self-organizing organoids, and controllable tissue microenvironments. The outcome will be a blueprint to decode principles of morphogenesis and to create programmable organoids with novel designs or improved functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mo R Ebrahimkhani
- Biodesign Institute, Arizona State Tempe, AZ, USA; School of Biological and Health Systems Engineering, Arizona State Tempe, AZ, USA; Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, Phoenix, AZ, USA.
| | - Miki Ebisuya
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) Barcelona, Dr. Aiguader, 88, 08003, Barcelona, Spain.
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29
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Xavier da Silveira Dos Santos A, Liberali P. From single cells to tissue self-organization. FEBS J 2018; 286:1495-1513. [PMID: 30390414 PMCID: PMC6519261 DOI: 10.1111/febs.14694] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2018] [Revised: 10/10/2018] [Accepted: 11/02/2018] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Self-organization is a process by which interacting cells organize and arrange themselves in higher order structures and patterns. To achieve this, cells must have molecular mechanisms to sense their complex local environment and interpret it to respond accordingly. A combination of cell-intrinsic and cell-extrinsic cues are decoded by the single cells dictating their behaviour, their differentiation and symmetry-breaking potential driving development, tissue remodeling and regenerative processes. A unifying property of these self-organized pattern-forming systems is the importance of fluctuations, cell-to-cell variability, or noise. Cell-to-cell variability is an inherent and emergent property of populations of cells that maximize the population performance instead of the individual cell, providing tissues the flexibility to develop and maintain homeostasis in diverse environments. In this review, we will explore the role of self-organization and cell-to-cell variability as fundamental properties of multicellularity-and the requisite of single-cell resolution for its understanding. Moreover, we will analyze how single cells generate emergent multicellular dynamics observed at the tissue level 'travelling' across different scales: spatial, temporal and functional.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Prisca Liberali
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research (FMI), Basel, Switzerland.,University of Basel, Switzerland
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30
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Information flow in the presence of cell mixing and signaling delays during embryonic development. Semin Cell Dev Biol 2018; 93:26-35. [PMID: 30261318 DOI: 10.1016/j.semcdb.2018.09.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2018] [Revised: 09/10/2018] [Accepted: 09/20/2018] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Embryonic morphogenesis is organized by an interplay between intercellular signaling and cell movements. Both intercellular signaling and cell movement involve multiple timescales. A key timescale for signaling is the time delay caused by preparation of signaling molecules and integration of received signals into cells' internal state. Movement of cells relative to their neighbors may introduce exchange of positions between cells during signaling. When cells change their relative positions in a tissue, the impact of signaling delays on intercellular signaling increases because the delayed information that cells receive may significantly differ from the present state of the tissue. The time it takes to perform a neighbor exchange sets a timescale of cell mixing that may be important for the outcome of signaling. Here we review recent theoretical work on the interplay of timescales between cell mixing and signaling delays adopting the zebrafish segmentation clock as a model system. We discuss how this interplay can lead to spatial patterns of gene expression that could disrupt the normal formation of segment boundaries in the embryo. The effect of cell mixing and signaling delays highlights the importance of theoretical and experimental frameworks to understand collective cellular behaviors arising from the interplay of multiple timescales in embryonic developmental processes.
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31
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Abstract
Biology is dynamic. Timescales range from frenetic sub-second ion fluxes and enzymatic reactions to the glacial millions of years of evolutionary change. Falling somewhere in the middle of this range are the processes we usually study in development: cell division and differentiation, gene expression, cell-cell signalling, and morphogenesis. But what sets the tempo and manages the order of developmental events? Are the order and tempo different between species? How is the sequence of multiple events coordinated? Here, we discuss the importance of time for developing embryos, highlighting the necessity for global as well as cell-autonomous control. New reagents and tools in imaging and genomic engineering, combined with in vitro culture, are beginning to offer fresh perspectives and molecular insight into the origin and mechanisms of developmental time.
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Affiliation(s)
- Miki Ebisuya
- RIKEN Center for Biosystems Dynamics Research (RIKEN BDR), 2-2-3 Minatojima-minamimachi, Chuo-ku, Kobe, 650-0047, Japan
| | - James Briscoe
- The Francis Crick Institute, 1 Midland Road, London NW1 1AT, UK
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32
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Abstract
The skeletal muscle lineage derives from the embryonic paraxial mesoderm (PM) which also gives rise to the axial skeleton, the dermis of the back, brown fat, meninges, and endothelial cells. Direct conversion was pioneered in skeletal muscle with overexpression of the transcription factor MyoD which can convert fibroblasts to a muscle fate. In contrast, directed differentiation of skeletal muscle from pluripotent cells (PC) in vitro has proven to be very difficult compared to other lineages and has only been achieved recently. Experimental strategies recapitulating myogenesis in vitro from mouse and human PC (ES/iPS) have now been reported and all rely on early activation of Wnt signaling at the epiblast stage. This leads to induction of neuromesodermal progenitors that can subsequently be induced to a PM fate and to skeletal muscle. These protocols can efficiently produce fetal muscle fibers and immature satellite cells. These new in vitro systems now open the possibility to better understand human myogenesis and to develop in vitro disease models as well as cell therapy approaches.
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Affiliation(s)
- Olivier Pourquié
- Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, United States; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States; Harvard Stem Cell Institute, Boston, MA, United States.
| | - Ziad Al Tanoury
- Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, United States; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States; Harvard Stem Cell Institute, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Jérome Chal
- Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, United States; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States; Harvard Stem Cell Institute, Boston, MA, United States
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