1
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Massri AJ, Berrio A, Afanassiev A, Greenstreet L, Pipho K, Byrne M, Schiebinger G, McClay DR, Wray GA. Single-cell transcriptomics reveals evolutionary reconfiguration of embryonic cell fate specification in the sea urchin Heliocidaris erythrogramma. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.04.30.591752. [PMID: 38746376 PMCID: PMC11092583 DOI: 10.1101/2024.04.30.591752] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/16/2024]
Abstract
Altered regulatory interactions during development likely underlie a large fraction of phenotypic diversity within and between species, yet identifying specific evolutionary changes remains challenging. Analysis of single-cell developmental transcriptomes from multiple species provides a powerful framework for unbiased identification of evolutionary changes in developmental mechanisms. Here, we leverage a "natural experiment" in developmental evolution in sea urchins, where a major life history switch recently evolved in the lineage leading to Heliocidaris erythrogramma, precipitating extensive changes in early development. Comparative analyses of scRNA-seq developmental time courses from H. erythrogramma and Lytechinus variegatus (representing the derived and ancestral states respectively) reveals numerous evolutionary changes in embryonic patterning. The earliest cell fate specification events, and the primary signaling center are co-localized in the ancestral dGRN but remarkably, in H. erythrogramma they are spatially and temporally separate. Fate specification and differentiation are delayed in most embryonic cell lineages, although in some cases, these processes are conserved or even accelerated. Comparative analysis of regulator-target gene co-expression is consistent with many specific interactions being preserved but delayed in H. erythrogramma, while some otherwise widely conserved interactions have likely been lost. Finally, specific patterning events are directly correlated with evolutionary changes in larval morphology, suggesting that they are directly tied to the life history shift. Together, these findings demonstrate that comparative scRNA-seq developmental time courses can reveal a diverse set of evolutionary changes in embryonic patterning and provide an efficient way to identify likely candidate regulatory interactions for subsequent experimental validation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Abdull J Massri
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27701 USA
| | | | - Anton Afanassiev
- Department of Mathematics, University of British Colombia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4 Canada
| | - Laura Greenstreet
- Department of Mathematics, University of British Colombia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4 Canada
| | - Krista Pipho
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27701 USA
| | - Maria Byrne
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Sydney University, Sydney, NSW Australia
| | - Geoffrey Schiebinger
- Department of Mathematics, University of British Colombia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4 Canada
| | - David R McClay
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27701 USA
| | - Gregory A Wray
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27701 USA
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2
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Sampilo NF, Song JL. microRNA-1 regulates sea urchin skeletogenesis by directly targeting skeletogenic genes and modulating components of signaling pathways. Dev Biol 2024; 508:123-137. [PMID: 38290645 PMCID: PMC10985635 DOI: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2024.01.010] [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: 05/08/2023] [Revised: 01/09/2024] [Accepted: 01/22/2024] [Indexed: 02/01/2024]
Abstract
microRNAs are evolutionarily conserved non-coding RNAs that direct post-transcriptional regulation of target transcripts. In vertebrates, microRNA-1 (miR-1) is expressed in muscle and has been found to play critical regulatory roles in vertebrate angiogenesis, a process that has been proposed to be analogous to sea urchin skeletogenesis. Results indicate that both miR-1 inhibitor and miR-1 mimic-injected larvae have significantly less F-actin enriched circumpharyngeal muscle fibers and fewer gut contractions. In addition, miR-1 regulates the positioning of skeletogenic primary mesenchyme cells (PMCs) and skeletogenesis of the sea urchin embryo. Interestingly, the gain-of-function of miR-1 leads to more severe PMC patterning and skeletal branching defects than its loss-of-function. The results suggest that miR-1 directly suppresses Ets1/2, Tbr, and VegfR7 of the skeletogenic gene regulatory network, and Nodal, and Wnt1 signaling components. This study identifies potential targets of miR-1 that impacts skeletogenesis and muscle formation and contributes to a deeper understanding of miR-1's function during development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nina Faye Sampilo
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, 19716, USA
| | - Jia L Song
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, 19716, USA.
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3
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Shi C, Chen S, Liu H, Pan R, Li S, Wang Y, Wu X, Li J, Li X, Xing C, Liu X, Wang Y, Qu Q, Li G. Evolution of the gene regulatory network of body axis by enhancer hijacking in amphioxus. eLife 2024; 13:e89615. [PMID: 38231024 DOI: 10.7554/elife.89615] [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: 05/23/2023] [Accepted: 12/19/2023] [Indexed: 01/18/2024] Open
Abstract
A central goal of evolutionary developmental biology is to decipher the evolutionary pattern of gene regulatory networks (GRNs) that control embryonic development, and the mechanism underlying GRNs evolution. The Nodal signaling that governs the body axes of deuterostomes exhibits a conserved GRN orchestrated principally by Nodal, Gdf1/3, and Lefty. Here we show that this GRN has been rewired in cephalochordate amphioxus. We found that while the amphioxus Gdf1/3 ortholog exhibited nearly no embryonic expression, its duplicate Gdf1/3-like, linked to Lefty, was zygotically expressed in a similar pattern as Lefty. Consistent with this, while Gdf1/3-like mutants showed defects in axial development, Gdf1/3 mutants did not. Further transgenic analyses showed that the intergenic region between Gdf1/3-like and Lefty could drive reporter gene expression as that of the two genes. These results indicated that Gdf1/3-like has taken over the axial development role of Gdf1/3 in amphioxus, possibly through hijacking Lefty enhancers. We finally demonstrated that, to compensate for the loss of maternal Gdf1/3 expression, Nodal has become an indispensable maternal factor in amphioxus and its maternal mutants caused axial defects as Gdf1/3-like mutants. We therefore demonstrated a case that the evolution of GRNs could be triggered by enhancer hijacking events. This pivotal event has allowed the emergence of a new GRN in extant amphioxus, presumably through a stepwise process. In addition, the co-expression of Gdf1/3-like and Lefty achieved by a shared regulatory region may have provided robustness during body axis formation, which provides a selection-based hypothesis for the phenomena called developmental system drift.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chenggang Shi
- State Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Biology, School of Life Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
| | - Shuang Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Biology, School of Life Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
| | - Huimin Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Biology, School of Life Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
| | - Rongrong Pan
- State Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Biology, School of Life Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
| | - Shiqi Li
- State Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Biology, School of Life Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
| | - Yanhui Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Biology, School of Life Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
| | - Xiaotong Wu
- State Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Biology, School of Life Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
| | - Jingjing Li
- State Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Biology, School of Life Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
| | - Xuewen Li
- State Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Biology, School of Life Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
| | - Chaofan Xing
- State Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Biology, School of Life Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
| | - Xian Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Biology, School of Life Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
| | - Yiquan Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Biology, School of Life Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
| | - Qingming Qu
- State Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Biology, School of Life Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
| | - Guang Li
- State Key Laboratory of Cellular Stress Biology, School of Life Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
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4
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Abstract
The goal of comparative developmental biology is identifying mechanistic differences in embryonic development between different taxa and how these evolutionary changes have led to morphological and organizational differences in adult body plans. Much of this work has focused on direct-developing species in which the adult forms straight from the embryo and embryonic modifications have direct effects on the adult. However, most animal lineages are defined by indirect development, in which the embryo gives rise to a larval body plan and the adult forms by transformation of the larva. Historically, much of our understanding of complex life cycles is viewed through the lenses of ecology and zoology. In this review, we discuss the importance of establishing developmental rather than morphological or ecological criteria for defining developmental mode and explicitly considering the evolutionary implications of incorporating complex life cycles into broad developmental comparisons of embryos across metazoans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laurent Formery
- Department of Biology, Hopkins Marine Station, Stanford University, Pacific Grove, California, USA;
- Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, University of California, Berkeley, California, USA
| | - Christopher J Lowe
- Department of Biology, Hopkins Marine Station, Stanford University, Pacific Grove, California, USA;
- Chan Zuckerberg BioHub, San Francisco, California, USA
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5
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Devens HR, Davidson PL, Byrne M, Wray GA. Hybrid Epigenomes Reveal Extensive Local Genetic Changes to Chromatin Accessibility Contribute to Divergence in Embryonic Gene Expression Between Species. Mol Biol Evol 2023; 40:msad222. [PMID: 37823438 PMCID: PMC10638671 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msad222] [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: 01/06/2023] [Revised: 06/14/2023] [Accepted: 07/27/2023] [Indexed: 10/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Chromatin accessibility plays an important role in shaping gene expression, yet little is known about the genetic and molecular mechanisms that influence the evolution of chromatin configuration. Both local (cis) and distant (trans) genetic influences can in principle influence chromatin accessibility and are based on distinct molecular mechanisms. We, therefore, sought to characterize the role that each of these plays in altering chromatin accessibility in 2 closely related sea urchin species. Using hybrids of Heliocidaris erythrogramma and Heliocidaris tuberculata, and adapting a statistical framework previously developed for the analysis of cis and trans influences on the transcriptome, we examined how these mechanisms shape the regulatory landscape at 3 important developmental stages, and compared our results to similar analyses of the transcriptome. We found extensive cis- and trans-based influences on evolutionary changes in chromatin, with cis effects generally larger in effect. Evolutionary changes in accessibility and gene expression are correlated, especially when expression has a local genetic basis. Maternal influences appear to have more of an effect on chromatin accessibility than on gene expression, persisting well past the maternal-to-zygotic transition. Chromatin accessibility near gene regulatory network genes appears to be distinctly regulated, with trans factors appearing to play an outsized role in the configuration of chromatin near these genes. Together, our results represent the first attempt to quantify cis and trans influences on evolutionary divergence in chromatin configuration in an outbred natural study system and suggest that chromatin regulation is more genetically complex than was previously appreciated.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Maria Byrne
- School of Medical Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- School of Life and Environmental Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Gregory A Wray
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
- Center for Genomic and Computational Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
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6
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Bronchain O, Ducos B, Putzer H, Delagrange M, Laalami S, Philippe-Caraty L, Saroul K, Ciapa B. Natural antisense transcription of presenilin in sea urchin reveals a possible role for natural antisense transcription in the general control of gene expression during development. J Cell Sci 2023; 136:jcs261284. [PMID: 37345489 DOI: 10.1242/jcs.261284] [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] [Received: 04/26/2023] [Accepted: 06/07/2023] [Indexed: 06/23/2023] Open
Abstract
One presenilin gene (PSEN) is expressed in the sea urchin embryo, in the vegetal pole of the gastrula and then mainly in cilia cells located around the digestive system of the pluteus, as we recently have reported. PSEN expression must be accurately regulated for correct execution of these two steps of development. While investigating PSEN expression changes in embryos after expansion of endoderm with LiCl or of ectoderm with Zn2+ by whole-mount in situ hybridization (WISH) and quantitative PCR (qPCR), we detected natural antisense transcription of PSEN. We then found that Endo16 and Wnt5, markers of endo-mesoderm, and of Hnf6 and Gsc, markers of ectoderm, are also sense and antisense transcribed. We discuss that general gene expression could depend on both sense and antisense transcription. This mechanism, together with the PSEN gene, should be included in gene regulatory networks (GRNs) that theorize diverse processes in this species. We suggest that it would also be relevant to investigate natural antisense transcription of PSEN in the field of Alzheimer's disease (AD) where the role of human PSEN1 and PSEN2 is well known.
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Affiliation(s)
- Odile Bronchain
- Paris-Saclay Institute of Neuroscience, CNRS, UMR CNRS 9197, Université Paris-Saclay, 75005 Paris, France
| | - Bertrand Ducos
- High Throughput qPCR Core Facility of the ENS, Université PSL, IBENS, Laboratoire de Physique de l'Ecole normale supérieure, ENS, Université PSL, CNRS, Sorbonne Université, Université de Paris, 75005 Paris, France
| | - Harald Putzer
- CNRS, Université Paris Cité, Expression Génétique Microbienne, IBPC, 75005 Paris, France
| | - Marine Delagrange
- High Throughput qPCR Core Facility of the ENS, Université PSL, IBENS, Laboratoire de Physique de l'Ecole normale supérieure, ENS, Université PSL, CNRS, Sorbonne Université, Université de Paris, 75005 Paris, France
| | - Soumaya Laalami
- CNRS, Université Paris Cité, Expression Génétique Microbienne, IBPC, 75005 Paris, France
| | - Laetitia Philippe-Caraty
- Institute for Integrative Biology of the Cell (I2BC), CEA, CNRS, Univ. Paris-Sud, Université Paris-Saclay, 91190 Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Krystel Saroul
- Institut CURIE, Université Paris-Saclay, INSERM U932, Immunité et Cancer, 91400 Orsay, France
| | - Brigitte Ciapa
- Paris-Saclay Institute of Neuroscience, CNRS, UMR CNRS 9197, Université Paris-Saclay, 75005 Paris, France
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7
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Chessel A, De Crozé N, Molina MD, Taberner L, Dru P, Martin L, Lepage T. RAS-independent ERK activation by constitutively active KSR3 in non-chordate metazoa. Nat Commun 2023; 14:3970. [PMID: 37407549 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-39606-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2022] [Accepted: 06/21/2023] [Indexed: 07/07/2023] Open
Abstract
During early development of the sea urchin embryo, activation of ERK signalling in mesodermal precursors is not triggered by extracellular RTK ligands but by a cell-autonomous, RAS-independent mechanism that was not understood. We discovered that in these cells, ERK signalling is activated through the transcriptional activation of a gene encoding a protein related to Kinase Suppressor of Ras, that we named KSR3. KSR3 belongs to a family of catalytically inactive allosteric activators of RAF. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that genes encoding kinase defective KSR3 proteins are present in most non-chordate metazoa but have been lost in flies and nematodes. We show that the structure of KSR3 factors resembles that of several oncogenic human RAF mutants and that KSR3 from echinoderms, cnidarians and hemichordates activate ERK signalling independently of RAS when overexpressed in cultured cells. Finally, we used the sequence of KSR3 factors to identify activating mutations of human B-RAF. These findings reveal key functions for this family of factors as activators of RAF in RAS-independent ERK signalling in invertebrates. They have implications on the evolution of the ERK signalling pathway and suggest a mechanism for its co-option in the course of evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aline Chessel
- Institut de Biologie Valrose CNRS, Université Côte d'Azur, Nice, France
| | - Noémie De Crozé
- Institut de Biologie Valrose CNRS, Université Côte d'Azur, Nice, France
| | - Maria Dolores Molina
- Department of Genetics, Microbiology and Statistics, Faculty of Biology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
| | - Laura Taberner
- Institut de Biologie Valrose CNRS, Université Côte d'Azur, Nice, France
| | - Philippe Dru
- CNRS, Laboratoire de Biologie du Développement de Villefranche-sur-Mer (LBDV), Institut de la Mer de Villefranche, 181 Chemin du Lazaret, 06230, Villefranche-sur-Mer, France
| | - Luc Martin
- Institut de Biologie Valrose CNRS, Université Côte d'Azur, Nice, France
| | - Thierry Lepage
- Institut de Biologie Valrose CNRS, Université Côte d'Azur, Nice, France.
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8
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Massri AJ, McDonald B, Wray GA, McClay DR. Feedback circuits are numerous in embryonic gene regulatory networks and offer a stabilizing influence on evolution of those networks. EvoDevo 2023; 14:10. [PMID: 37322563 DOI: 10.1186/s13227-023-00214-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2022] [Accepted: 06/06/2023] [Indexed: 06/17/2023] Open
Abstract
The developmental gene regulatory networks (dGRNs) of two sea urchin species, Lytechinus variegatus (Lv) and Strongylocentrotus purpuratus (Sp), have remained remarkably similar despite about 50 million years since a common ancestor. Hundreds of parallel experimental perturbations of transcription factors with similar outcomes support this conclusion. A recent scRNA-seq analysis suggested that the earliest expression of several genes within the dGRNs differs between Lv and Sp. Here, we present a careful reanalysis of the dGRNs in these two species, paying close attention to timing of first expression. We find that initial expression of genes critical for cell fate specification occurs during several compressed time periods in both species. Previously unrecognized feedback circuits are inferred from the temporally corrected dGRNs. Although many of these feedbacks differ in location within the respective GRNs, the overall number is similar between species. We identify several prominent differences in timing of first expression for key developmental regulatory genes; comparison with a third species indicates that these heterochronies likely originated in an unbiased manner with respect to embryonic cell lineage and evolutionary branch. Together, these results suggest that interactions can evolve even within highly conserved dGRNs and that feedback circuits may buffer the effects of heterochronies in the expression of key regulatory genes.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Brennan McDonald
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Box 90338, Durham, NC, 27708, USA
| | - Gregory A Wray
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Box 90338, Durham, NC, 27708, USA
| | - David R McClay
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Box 90338, Durham, NC, 27708, USA.
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9
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Paganos P, Ullmann CV, Gaglio D, Bonanomi M, Salmistraro N, Arnone MI, Jimenez-Guri E. Plastic leachate-induced toxicity during sea urchin embryonic development: Insights into the molecular pathways affected by PVC. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2023; 864:160901. [PMID: 36526210 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.160901] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2022] [Revised: 12/08/2022] [Accepted: 12/08/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Microplastics are now polluting all seas and, while studies have found numerous negative interactions between plastic pollution and marine animals, the effects on embryonic development are poorly understood. A potentially important source of developmental ecotoxicity comes from chemicals leached from plastic particles to the marine environment. Here we investigate the effects of leachates from new and beach-collected pellets on the embryonic and larval development of the sea urchin Strongylocentrotus purpuratus and demonstrate that exposure of developing embryos to these leachates elicits severe, consistent and treatment-specific developmental abnormalities including radialisation of the embryo and malformation of the skeleton, neural and immune cells. Using a multi-omics approach we define the developmental pathways disturbed upon exposure to PVC leachates and provide a mechanistic view that pinpoints cellular redox stress and energy production as drivers of phenotypic abnormalities following exposure to PVC leachates. Analysis of leachates identified high concentrations of zinc that are the likely cause of these observed defects. Our findings point to clear and specific detrimental effects of marine plastic pollution on the development of echinoderms, demonstrating that chemicals leached from plastic particles into sea water can produce strong developmental abnormalities via specific pathways, and therefore have the potential to impact on a wide range of organisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Periklis Paganos
- Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Department of Biology and Evolution of Marine Organisms, Naples, Italy.
| | - Clemens Vinzenz Ullmann
- Department for Earth and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Environment, Science and Economy, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Penryn, UK.
| | - Daniela Gaglio
- Institute of Molecular Bioimaging and Physiology (IBFM), National Research Council (CNR), Segrate, Milan, Italy; ISBE, IT/Centre of Systems Biology-Elixir Infrastructure and NBFC, National Biodiversity Future Center, Palermo, Italy.
| | - Marcella Bonanomi
- Department of Biotechnology and Biosciences, University of Milano-Bicocca, Milan, Italy; ISBE, IT/Centre of Systems Biology-Elixir Infrastructure and NBFC, National Biodiversity Future Center, Palermo, Italy.
| | - Noemi Salmistraro
- Institute of Molecular Bioimaging and Physiology (IBFM), National Research Council (CNR), Segrate, Milan, Italy; ISBE, IT/Centre of Systems Biology-Elixir Infrastructure and NBFC, National Biodiversity Future Center, Palermo, Italy.
| | - Maria Ina Arnone
- Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Department of Biology and Evolution of Marine Organisms, Naples, Italy.
| | - Eva Jimenez-Guri
- Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Department of Biology and Evolution of Marine Organisms, Naples, Italy; Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, UK.
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10
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Computational approaches to understand transcription regulation in development. Biochem Soc Trans 2023; 51:1-12. [PMID: 36695505 PMCID: PMC9988001 DOI: 10.1042/bst20210145] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2022] [Revised: 01/07/2023] [Accepted: 01/13/2023] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Abstract
Gene regulatory networks (GRNs) serve as useful abstractions to understand transcriptional dynamics in developmental systems. Computational prediction of GRNs has been successfully applied to genome-wide gene expression measurements with the advent of microarrays and RNA-sequencing. However, these inferred networks are inaccurate and mostly based on correlative rather than causative interactions. In this review, we highlight three approaches that significantly impact GRN inference: (1) moving from one genome-wide functional modality, gene expression, to multi-omics, (2) single cell sequencing, to measure cell type-specific signals and predict context-specific GRNs, and (3) neural networks as flexible models. Together, these experimental and computational developments have the potential to significantly impact the quality of inferred GRNs. Ultimately, accurately modeling the regulatory interactions between transcription factors and their target genes will be essential to understand the role of transcription factors in driving developmental gene expression programs and to derive testable hypotheses for validation.
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11
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Devens HR, Davidson PL, Byrne M, Wray GA. Hybrid epigenomes reveal extensive local genetic changes to chromatin accessibility contribute to divergence in embryonic gene expression between species. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.01.04.522781. [PMID: 36711588 PMCID: PMC9881966 DOI: 10.1101/2023.01.04.522781] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
Chromatin accessibility plays an important role in shaping gene expression patterns across development and evolution; however, little is known about the genetic and molecular mechanisms that influence chromatin configuration itself. Because cis and trans influences can both theoretically influence the accessibility of the epigenome, we sought to better characterize the role that both of these mechanisms play in altering chromatin accessibility in two closely related sea urchin species. Using hybrids of the two species, and adapting a statistical framework previously developed for the analysis of cis and trans influences on the transcriptome, we examined how these mechanisms shape the regulatory landscape at three important developmental stages, and compared our results to similar patterns in the transcriptome. We found extensive cis- and trans-based influences on evolutionary changes in chromatin, with cis effects slightly more numerous and larger in effect. Genetic mechanisms influencing gene expression and chromatin configuration are correlated, but differ in several important ways. Maternal influences also appear to have more of an effect on chromatin accessibility than on gene expression, persisting well past the maternal-to-zygotic transition. Furthermore, chromatin accessibility near GRN genes appears to be regulated differently than the rest of the epigenome, and indicates that trans factors may play an outsized role in the configuration of chromatin near these genes. Together, our results represent the first attempt to quantify cis and trans influences on evolutionary divergence in chromatin configuration in an outbred natural study system, and suggest that the regulation of chromatin is more genetically complex than was previously appreciated.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Maria Byrne
- School of Medical Science, The University of Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia
- School of Life and Environmental Science, The University of Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia
| | - Gregory A. Wray
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
- Center for Genomic and Computational Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
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12
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Rodríguez-Sastre N, Shapiro N, Hawkins DY, Lion AT, Peyreau M, Correa AE, Dionne K, Bradham CA. Ethanol exposure perturbs sea urchin development and disrupts developmental timing. Dev Biol 2023; 493:89-102. [PMID: 36368523 DOI: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2022.11.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2022] [Revised: 11/01/2022] [Accepted: 11/03/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Ethanol is a known vertebrate teratogen that causes craniofacial defects as a component of fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS). Our results show that sea urchin embryos treated with ethanol similarly show broad skeletal patterning defects, potentially analogous to the defects associated with FAS. The sea urchin larval skeleton is a simple patterning system that involves only two cell types: the primary mesenchymal cells (PMCs) that secrete the calcium carbonate skeleton and the ectodermal cells that provide migratory, positional, and differentiation cues for the PMCs. Perturbations in RA biosynthesis and Hh signaling pathways are thought to be causal for the FAS phenotype in vertebrates. Surprisingly, our results indicate that these pathways are not functionally relevant for the teratogenic effects of ethanol in developing sea urchins. We found that developmental morphology as well as the expression of some ectodermal and PMC genes was delayed by ethanol exposure. Temporal transcriptome analysis revealed significant impacts of ethanol on signaling and metabolic gene expression, and a disruption in the timing of GRN gene expression that includes both delayed and precocious gene expression throughout the specification network. We conclude that the skeletal patterning perturbations in ethanol-treated embryos likely arise from a loss of temporal synchrony within and between the instructive and responsive tissues.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Alexandra T Lion
- Biology Department, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA; MCBB Program, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA
| | | | - Andrea E Correa
- Universidad de Puerto Rico-Recinto Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, USA
| | | | - Cynthia A Bradham
- Biology Department, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA; MCBB Program, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA; Biological Design Center, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA.
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13
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Feuda R, Peter IS. Homologous gene regulatory networks control development of apical organs and brains in Bilateria. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2022; 8:eabo2416. [PMID: 36322649 PMCID: PMC9629743 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abo2416] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/12/2023]
Abstract
Apical organs are relatively simple larval nervous systems. The extent to which apical organs are evolutionarily related to the more complex nervous systems of other animals remains unclear. To identify common developmental mechanisms, we analyzed the gene regulatory network (GRN) controlling the development of the apical organ in sea urchins. We characterized the developmental expression of 30 transcription factors and identified key regulatory functions for FoxQ2, Hbn, Delta/Notch signaling, and SoxC in the patterning of the apical organ and the specification of neurons. Almost the entire set of apical transcription factors is expressed in the nervous system of worms, flies, zebrafish, frogs, and mice. Furthermore, a regulatory module controlling the axial patterning of the vertebrate brain is expressed in the ectoderm of sea urchin embryos. We conclude that GRNs controlling the formation of bilaterian nervous systems share a common origin and that the apical GRN likely resembles an ancestral regulatory program.
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Formery L, Wakefield A, Gesson M, Toisoul L, Lhomond G, Gilletta L, Lasbleiz R, Schubert M, Croce JC. Developmental atlas of the indirect-developing sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus: From fertilization to juvenile stages. Front Cell Dev Biol 2022; 10:966408. [DOI: 10.3389/fcell.2022.966408] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2022] [Accepted: 08/26/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus has been used as a model system in biology for more than a century. Over the past decades, it has been at the center of a number of studies in cell, developmental, ecological, toxicological, evolutionary, and aquaculture research. Due to this previous work, a significant amount of information is already available on the development of this species. However, this information is fragmented and rather incomplete. Here, we propose a comprehensive developmental atlas for this sea urchin species, describing its ontogeny from fertilization to juvenile stages. Our staging scheme includes three periods divided into 33 stages, plus 15 independent stages focused on the development of the coeloms and the adult rudiment. For each stage, we provide a thorough description based on observations made on live specimens using light microscopy, and when needed on fixed specimens using confocal microscopy. Our descriptions include, for each stage, the main anatomical characteristics related, for instance, to cell division, tissue morphogenesis, and/or organogenesis. Altogether, this work is the first of its kind providing, in a single study, a comprehensive description of the development of P. lividus embryos, larvae, and juveniles, including details on skeletogenesis, ciliogenesis, myogenesis, coelomogenesis, and formation of the adult rudiment as well as on the process of metamorphosis in live specimens. Given the renewed interest for the use of sea urchins in ecotoxicological, developmental, and evolutionary studies as well as in using marine invertebrates as alternative model systems for biomedical investigations, this study will greatly benefit the scientific community and will serve as a reference for specialists and non-specialists interested in studying sea urchins.
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Tacconi S, Augello S, Persano F, Sbarigia C, Carata E, Leporatti S, Fidaleo M, Dini L. Amino-functionalized mesoporous silica nanoparticles (NH 2-MSiNPs) impair the embryonic development of the sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus. ENVIRONMENTAL TOXICOLOGY AND PHARMACOLOGY 2022; 95:103956. [PMID: 35963553 DOI: 10.1016/j.etap.2022.103956] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2022] [Revised: 07/15/2022] [Accepted: 08/08/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Nanoparticles have found use in a wide range of applications, mainly as carriers of active biomolecules. It is thus necessary to assess their toxicity for human health, as well as for the environment, on which there is still a gap of knowledge. In this work, sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus, a widely used model for embryotoxicity and spermiotoxicity, has been used to assess potential detrimental effects of amino-functionalized mesoporous silica nanoparticles (NH2-MSiNPs) on embryonic development. Specifically, gametes quality, embryogenesis morphological and timing alterations, and cellular stress markers, such as mitochondrial functionality, were assessed in presence of different concentrations of NH2-MSiNPs in filtered seawater (FSW). Furthermore, dorsal-ventral axis development and skeletogenesis were characterized by microscopy imaging and gene expression analysis. NH2-MSiNPs determined a strong reduction in the egg fertilization rate. Consequently, the presence of NH2-MSiNPs resulted detrimental in P. lividus embryonic development, with severe morphological alterations correlated with an increased embryos mortality. Finally, NH2-MSiNPs treatment was responsible for other toxic effects, such as reduced mitochondrial function and skeletogenesis alterations, according to the reduced mineralization sites in the endoskeleton formation and the related genes altered expression. Taken together, these results suggest the potential toxic effects of NH2-MSiNPs on the marine ecosystem, with consequences for the development and reproduction of its organisms. Despite their promising potential as carriers of biomolecules, it is pivotal to consider that their uncontrolled use may result harmful to the environment and, consequently, to living organisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefano Tacconi
- Department of Biology and Biotechnology Charles Darwin, University of Rome Sapienza, 00185 Rome, Italy.
| | - Simone Augello
- Department of Biology and Biotechnology Charles Darwin, University of Rome Sapienza, 00185 Rome, Italy.
| | - Francesca Persano
- University of Salento, Department of Mathematics and Physics, 73100 Lecce, Italy; CNR Nanotec-Istituto di Nanotecnologia, 73100 Lecce, Italy.
| | - Carolina Sbarigia
- Department of Biology and Biotechnology Charles Darwin, University of Rome Sapienza, 00185 Rome, Italy.
| | - Elisabetta Carata
- Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences and Technologies, University of Salento, Monteroni, 73100 Lecce, Italy.
| | | | - Marco Fidaleo
- Department of Biology and Biotechnology Charles Darwin, University of Rome Sapienza, 00185 Rome, Italy; CNIS Research Center for Nanotechnology Applied to Engineering, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy.
| | - Luciana Dini
- Department of Biology and Biotechnology Charles Darwin, University of Rome Sapienza, 00185 Rome, Italy; CNIS Research Center for Nanotechnology Applied to Engineering, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy.
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Bonaventura R, Costa C, Deidda I, Zito F, Russo R. Gene Expression Analysis of the Stress Response to Lithium, Nickel, and Zinc in Paracentrotus lividus Embryos. TOXICS 2022; 10:toxics10060325. [PMID: 35736933 PMCID: PMC9231221 DOI: 10.3390/toxics10060325] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2022] [Revised: 06/06/2022] [Accepted: 06/11/2022] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
Many anthropogenic pollutants such as metals are discharged into the marine environment through modern sources. Among these, lithium (Li), nickel (Ni), and zinc (Zn) can interfere with biological processes in many organisms when their concentration rises. These metals are toxic to sea urchin embryos, affecting their development. Indeed, animal/vegetal and dorso/ventral embryonic axes are differently perturbed: Li is a vegetalizing agent, Ni can disrupt dorso-ventral axis, Zn can be animalizing. To address the molecular response adopted by embryos to cope with these metals or involved in the gene networks regulating embryogenesis, and to detect new biomarkers for evaluating hazards in polluted environments in a well-known in vivo model, we applied a high-throughput screening approach to sea urchin embryos. After fertilization, Paracentrotus lividus embryos were exposed to Li, Ni, and Zn for 24/48 h. At both endpoints, RNAs were analyzed by NanoString nCounter technology. By in silico analyses, we selected a panel of 127 transcripts encoding for regulatory and structural proteins, ranked in categories: Apoptosis, Defense, Immune, Nervous, Development, and Biomineralization. The data analysis highlighted the dysregulation of many genes in a metal-dependent manner. A functional annotation analysis was performed by the KEEG Orthology database. This study provides a platform for research on metals biomarkers in sea urchins.
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Kinjo S, Kiyomoto M, Suzuki H, Yamamoto T, Ikeo K, Yaguchi S. TrBase: A genome and transcriptome database of Temnopleurus reevesii. Dev Growth Differ 2022; 64:210-218. [PMID: 35451498 DOI: 10.1111/dgd.12780] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2022] [Revised: 04/16/2022] [Accepted: 04/18/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Sea urchins have a long history as model organisms in biology, but their use in genetics is limited because of their long breeding cycle. In sea urchin genetics, genome editing technology was first established in Hemicentrotus pulcherrimus, whose genome has already been published. However, because this species also has a long breeding cycle, new model sea urchins that are more suitable for genetics have been sought. Here, we report a draft genome of another Western Pacific species, Temnopleurus reevesii, which we established as a new model sea urchin recently since this species has a comparable developmental process to other model sea urchins but a short breeding cycle of approximately half a year. The genome of T. reevesii was assembled into 28,742 scaffold sequences with an N50 length of 67.6 kb and an estimated genome size of 905.9 Mb. In the assembled genome, 27,064 genes were identified, 23,624 of which were expressed in at least one of the seven developmental stages. To provide genetic information, we constructed the genome database TrBase (https://cell-innovation.nig.ac.jp/Tree/). We also constructed the Western Pacific Sea Urchin Genome Database (WestPac-SUGDB) (https://cell-innovation.nig.ac.jp/WPAC/) with the aim of establishing a portal site for genetic information on sea urchins in the West Pacific. This site contains genomic information on two species, T. reevesii and H. pulcherrimus, and is equipped with homology search programs for comparing the two datasets. Therefore, TrBase and WestPac-SUGDB are expected to contribute not only to genetic research using sea urchins but also to comparative genomics and evolutionary research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sonoko Kinjo
- Department of Genomics and Evolutionary Biology, National Institute of Genetics, Mishima, Japan
| | - Masato Kiyomoto
- Institute for Marine and Coastal Research, Ochanomizu University, Tateyama, Japan
| | - Haruka Suzuki
- Shimoda Marine Research Center, University of Tsukuba, Shimoda, Japan
| | - Takashi Yamamoto
- Division of Integrated Sciences for Life, Graduate School of Integrated Sciences for Life, Hiroshima University, Higashi-Hiroshima, Japan
| | - Kazuho Ikeo
- Department of Genomics and Evolutionary Biology, National Institute of Genetics, Mishima, Japan
| | - Shunsuke Yaguchi
- Shimoda Marine Research Center, University of Tsukuba, Shimoda, Japan.,PRESTO, JST, Kawaguchi, Japan
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Tarsis K, Gildor T, Morgulis M, Ben-Tabou de-Leon S. Distinct regulatory states control the elongation of individual skeletal rods in the sea urchin embryo. Dev Dyn 2022; 251:1322-1339. [PMID: 35403290 PMCID: PMC9543741 DOI: 10.1002/dvdy.474] [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: 01/23/2022] [Revised: 03/28/2022] [Accepted: 04/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Understanding how gene regulatory networks (GRNs) control developmental progression is a key to the mechanistic understanding of morphogenesis. The sea urchin larval skeletogenesis provides an excellent platform to tackle this question. In the early stages of sea urchin skeletogenesis, skeletogenic genes are uniformly expressed in the skeletogenic lineage. Yet, during skeletal elongation, skeletogenic genes are expressed in distinct spatial sub‐domains. The regulation of differential gene expression during late skeletogenesis is not well understood. Results Here we reveal the dynamic expression of the skeletogenic regulatory genes that define a specific regulatory state for each pair of skeletal rods, in the sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus. The vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) signaling, essential for skeleton formation, specifically controls the migration of cells that form the postoral and distal anterolateral skeletogenic rods. VEGF signaling also controls the expression of regulatory genes in cells at the tips of the postoral rods, including the transcription factors Pitx1 and MyoD1. Pitx1 activity is required for normal skeletal elongation and for the expression of some of VEGF target genes. Conclusions Our study illuminates the fine‐tuning of the regulatory system during the transition from early to late skeletogenesis that gives rise to rod‐specific regulatory states. The skeletogenic transcription factors form specific regulatory states in various skeletogenic sub‐populations. Late VEGF signaling controls the regulatory states at the tips of the post‐oral and anterolateral skeletal rods. VEGF signaling controls the expression of the transcription factors, MyoD1 and Pitx1. Pitx1 activity is required for normal skeletal elongation and for the expression of some of VEGF target genes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kristina Tarsis
- Department of Marine Biology, Leon H. Charney School of Marine Sciences, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
| | - Tsvia Gildor
- Department of Marine Biology, Leon H. Charney School of Marine Sciences, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
| | - Miri Morgulis
- Department of Marine Biology, Leon H. Charney School of Marine Sciences, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
| | - Smadar Ben-Tabou de-Leon
- Department of Marine Biology, Leon H. Charney School of Marine Sciences, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
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Meyer A, Hinman V. The arm of the starfish: The far-reaching applications of Patiria miniata as a model system in evolutionary, developmental, and regenerative biology. Curr Top Dev Biol 2022; 147:523-543. [PMID: 35337461 DOI: 10.1016/bs.ctdb.2022.01.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
Many species of echinoderms have long been considered model research organisms in biology. Historically, much of this research has focused on the embryology of sea urchins and the use of their extensive gene regulatory networks as a tool to understand how the genome controls cell state specification and patterning. The establishment of Patiria miniata, the bat sea star, as a research organism has allowed us to expand on the concepts explored with sea urchins, viewing these genetic networks through a comparative lens, gaining great insight into the evolutionary mechanisms that shape developmental diversity. Extensive molecular tools have been developed in P. miniata, designed to explore gene expression dynamics and build gene regulatory networks. Echinoderms also have a robust set of bioinformatic and computational resources, centered around echinobase.org, an extensive database containing multiomic, developmental, and experimental resources for researchers. In addition to comparative evolutionary development, P. miniata is a promising system in its own right for studying whole body regeneration, metamorphosis and body plan development, as well as marine disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anne Meyer
- Department of Biological Sciences, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
| | - Veronica Hinman
- Department of Biological Sciences, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, United States.
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Su YH. Dorsal-ventral axis formation in sea urchin embryos. Curr Top Dev Biol 2022; 146:183-210. [PMID: 35152983 DOI: 10.1016/bs.ctdb.2021.10.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Most sea urchin species produce planktonic feeding larvae with distinct dorsal-ventral polarity. Such morphological indicators of polarity arise after gastrulation, when several morphogenesis and cell differentiation events occur differentially along the dorsal-ventral axis. For instance, the gut bends toward the ventral side where the mouth will form, skeletogenesis occurs initially near the ventral side with the forming skeleton extending dorsally, and pigment cells differentiate and embed in the dorsal ectoderm. The patterning mechanisms and gene regulatory networks underlying these events have been extensively studied. Two opposing TGF-β signaling pathways, Nodal and BMP, play key roles in all three germ layers to respectively pattern the sea urchin ventral and dorsal sides. In this chapter, I describe our current understanding of sea urchin dorsal-ventral patterning mechanisms. Additionally, differences in the patterning mechanisms observed in lecithotrophic sea urchins (nonfeeding larvae) and in cidaroid sea urchins are also discussed, along with evolutionary insights gained from comparative analyses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yi-Hsien Su
- Institute of Cellular and Organismic Biology, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan.
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21
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Abstract
This review reports recent findings on the specification and patterning of neurons that establish the larval nervous system of the sea urchin embryo. Neurons originate in three regions of the embryo. Perturbation analyses enabled construction of gene regulatory networks controlling the several neural cell types. Many of the mechanisms described reflect shared features of all metazoans and others are conserved among deuterostomes. This nervous system with a very small number of neurons supports the feeding and swimming behaviors of the larva until metamorphosis when an adult nervous system replaces that system.
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Affiliation(s)
- David R McClay
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC, United States.
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22
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Suzuki H, Yaguchi S. Direct TGF-ß signaling via alk4/5/7 pathway is involved in gut bending in sea urchin embryos. Dev Dyn 2021; 251:226-234. [PMID: 34816532 DOI: 10.1002/dvdy.442] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2021] [Revised: 11/05/2021] [Accepted: 11/21/2021] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Precise gastrulation is essential for formation of functional bodies in cnidarians and bilaterians. Previously, by using an alk4/5/7-specific inhibitor, we showed that transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-ß)-alk4/5/7 signaling pathway is important for correct gut bending in sea urchin embryos. However, it is still unclear where functional TGF-ß signals are received in embryos for correct gut bending because details of the spatiotemporal expression pattern of alk4/5/7 have not been reported. RESULTS We revealed that alk4/5/7 are expressed from the 2-cell to early pluteus stage throughout the entire body, including the invaginating gut. To investigate whether TGF-ß signals directly received in endoderm are required for correct gut bending, we made chimeras in which alk4/5/7 translation was inhibited only in endomesoderm lineage. As a result, the gut of the chimeric embryos did not bend precisely, in contrast to the control chimeras. CONCLUSION We conclude that direct TGF-ß signaling to the endoderm via alk4/5/7 pathway regulates correct gut bending. However, TGF-ß-alk4/5/7 pathway is not related to mouth opening because the mouth is formed without TGF-ß signaling to the endoderm. This research contributes to understanding the mechanisms leading to the proper positioning of the end of the archenteron for forming a through-gut, which is commonly needed for bilaterians.
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Affiliation(s)
- Haruka Suzuki
- Shimoda Marine Research Center, University of Tsukuba, Shizuoka, Japan
| | - Shunsuke Yaguchi
- Shimoda Marine Research Center, University of Tsukuba, Shizuoka, Japan.,PRESTO, JST, Kawaguchi, Saitama, Japan
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Massri AJ, Greenstreet L, Afanassiev A, Berrio A, Wray GA, Schiebinger G, McClay DR. Developmental single-cell transcriptomics in the Lytechinus variegatus sea urchin embryo. Development 2021; 148:271986. [PMID: 34463740 DOI: 10.1242/dev.198614] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/14/2020] [Accepted: 08/20/2021] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
Using scRNA-seq coupled with computational approaches, we studied transcriptional changes in cell states of sea urchin embryos during development to the larval stage. Eighteen closely spaced time points were taken during the first 24 h of development of Lytechinus variegatus (Lv). Developmental trajectories were constructed using Waddington-OT, a computational approach to 'stitch' together developmental time points. Skeletogenic and primordial germ cell trajectories diverged early in cleavage. Ectodermal progenitors were distinct from other lineages by the 6th cleavage, although a small percentage of ectoderm cells briefly co-expressed endoderm markers that indicated an early ecto-endoderm cell state, likely in cells originating from the equatorial region of the egg. Endomesoderm cells also originated at the 6th cleavage and this state persisted for more than two cleavages, then diverged into distinct endoderm and mesoderm fates asynchronously, with some cells retaining an intermediate specification status until gastrulation. Seventy-nine out of 80 genes (99%) examined, and included in published developmental gene regulatory networks (dGRNs), are present in the Lv-scRNA-seq dataset and are expressed in the correct lineages in which the dGRN circuits operate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Abdull J Massri
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Laura Greenstreet
- Department of Mathematics, University of British Columbia, 121-1984 Mathematics Road, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z2, Canada
| | - Anton Afanassiev
- Department of Mathematics, University of British Columbia, 121-1984 Mathematics Road, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z2, Canada
| | | | - Gregory A Wray
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Geoffrey Schiebinger
- Department of Mathematics, University of British Columbia, 121-1984 Mathematics Road, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z2, Canada
| | - David R McClay
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
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Layous M, Khalaily L, Gildor T, Ben-Tabou de-Leon S. The tolerance to hypoxia is defined by a time-sensitive response of the gene regulatory network in sea urchin embryos. Development 2021; 148:dev.195859. [PMID: 33795230 PMCID: PMC8077511 DOI: 10.1242/dev.195859] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2020] [Accepted: 03/22/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Deoxygenation, the reduction of oxygen level in the oceans induced by global warming and anthropogenic disturbances, is a major threat to marine life. This change in oxygen level could be especially harmful to marine embryos that use endogenous hypoxia and redox gradients as morphogens during normal development. Here, we show that the tolerance to hypoxic conditions changes between different developmental stages of the sea urchin embryo, possibly due to the structure of the gene regulatory networks (GRNs). We demonstrate that during normal development, the bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) pathway restricts the activity of the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) pathway to two lateral domains and this restriction controls proper skeletal patterning. Hypoxia applied during early development strongly perturbs the activity of Nodal and BMP pathways that affect the VEGF pathway, dorsal-ventral (DV) and skeletogenic patterning. These pathways are largely unaffected by hypoxia applied after DV-axis formation. We propose that the use of redox and hypoxia as morphogens makes the sea urchin embryo highly sensitive to environmental hypoxia during early development, but the GRN structure provides higher tolerance to hypoxia at later stages. Summary: The use of hypoxia and redox gradients as morphogens makes sea urchin early development sensitive to environmental hypoxia. This sensitivity decreases later, possibly due to the gene regulatory network structure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Majed Layous
- Department of Marine Biology, Leon H. Charney School of Marine Sciences, University of Haifa, Haifa 31905, Israel
| | - Lama Khalaily
- Department of Marine Biology, Leon H. Charney School of Marine Sciences, University of Haifa, Haifa 31905, Israel
| | - Tsvia Gildor
- Department of Marine Biology, Leon H. Charney School of Marine Sciences, University of Haifa, Haifa 31905, Israel
| | - Smadar Ben-Tabou de-Leon
- Department of Marine Biology, Leon H. Charney School of Marine Sciences, University of Haifa, Haifa 31905, Israel
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Glaviano F, Ruocco N, Somma E, De Rosa G, Campani V, Ametrano P, Caramiello D, Costantini M, Zupo V. Two Benthic Diatoms, Nanofrustulum shiloi and Striatella unipunctata, Encapsulated in Alginate Beads, Influence the Reproductive Efficiency of Paracentrotus lividus by Modulating the Gene Expression. Mar Drugs 2021; 19:md19040230. [PMID: 33920652 PMCID: PMC8074093 DOI: 10.3390/md19040230] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2021] [Revised: 04/08/2021] [Accepted: 04/15/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Physiological effects of algal metabolites is a key step for the isolation of interesting bioactive compounds. Invertebrate grazers may be fed on live diatoms or dried, pelletized, and added to compound feeds. Any method may reveal some shortcomings, due to the leaking of wound-activated compounds in the water prior to ingestion. For this reason, encapsulation may represent an important step of bioassay-guided fractionation, because it may assure timely preservation of the active compounds. Here we test the effects of the inclusion in alginate (biocompatible and non-toxic delivery system) matrices to produce beads containing two benthic diatoms for sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus feeding. In particular, we compared the effects of a diatom whose influence on P. lividus was known (Nanofrustulum shiloi) and those of a diatom suspected to be harmful to marine invertebrates, because it is often present in blooms (Striatella unipunctata). Dried N. shiloi and S. unipunctata were offered for one month after encapsulation in alginate hydrogel beads and the larvae produced by sea urchins were checked for viability and malformations. The results indicated that N. shiloi, already known for its toxigenic effects on sea urchin larvae, fully conserved its activity after inclusion in alginate beads. On the whole, benthic diatoms affected the embryogenesis of P. lividus, altering the expression of several genes involved in stress response, development, skeletogenesis and detoxification processes. Interactomic analysis suggested that both diatoms activated a similar stress response pathway, through the up-regulation of hsp60, hsp70, NF-κB, 14-3-3 ε and MDR1 genes. This research also demonstrates that the inclusion in alginate beads may represent a feasible technique to isolate diatom-derived bioactive compounds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francesca Glaviano
- Department of Marine Biotechnology, Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Villa Comunale, 80121 Napoli, Italy; (F.G.); (N.R.); (E.S.); (P.A.)
- Department of Biology, University of Naples Federico II, Complesso Universitario di Monte Sant’Angelo, Via Cinthia 21, 80126 Napoli, Italy
| | - Nadia Ruocco
- Department of Marine Biotechnology, Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Villa Comunale, 80121 Napoli, Italy; (F.G.); (N.R.); (E.S.); (P.A.)
| | - Emanuele Somma
- Department of Marine Biotechnology, Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Villa Comunale, 80121 Napoli, Italy; (F.G.); (N.R.); (E.S.); (P.A.)
- Department of Life Sciences, University of Trieste, 34127 Trieste, Italy
| | - Giuseppe De Rosa
- Department of Pharmacy, University of Naples Federico II, 80131 Naples, Italy; (G.D.R.); (V.C.)
| | - Virginia Campani
- Department of Pharmacy, University of Naples Federico II, 80131 Naples, Italy; (G.D.R.); (V.C.)
| | - Pasquale Ametrano
- Department of Marine Biotechnology, Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Villa Comunale, 80121 Napoli, Italy; (F.G.); (N.R.); (E.S.); (P.A.)
- Department of Biology, University of Naples Federico II, Complesso Universitario di Monte Sant’Angelo, Via Cinthia 21, 80126 Napoli, Italy
| | - Davide Caramiello
- Department of Research Infrastructures for Marine Biological Resources, Marine Organisms Core Facility, Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Villa Comunale, 80121 Napoli, Italy;
| | - Maria Costantini
- Department of Marine Biotechnology, Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Villa Comunale, 80121 Napoli, Italy; (F.G.); (N.R.); (E.S.); (P.A.)
- Correspondence: (M.C.); (V.Z.); Tel.: +39-081-583-3315 (M.C.); Fax: +39-081-764-1355 (M.C.)
| | - Valerio Zupo
- Department of Marine Biotechnology, Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Villa Comunale, 80121 Napoli, Italy; (F.G.); (N.R.); (E.S.); (P.A.)
- Correspondence: (M.C.); (V.Z.); Tel.: +39-081-583-3315 (M.C.); Fax: +39-081-764-1355 (M.C.)
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Carata E, Tenuzzo BA, Mariano S, Setini A, Fidaleo M, Dini L. RETRACTED ARTICLE: Genotoxicity and alteration of the Gene Regulatory Network expression during Paracentrotus lividus development in the presence of carbon nanoparticles. Toxicol Res 2021; 38:257. [PMID: 35415079 PMCID: PMC8960529 DOI: 10.1007/s43188-020-00081-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2020] [Revised: 11/13/2020] [Accepted: 12/17/2020] [Indexed: 10/25/2022] Open
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Pieplow A, Dastaw M, Sakuma T, Sakamoto N, Yamamoto T, Yajima M, Oulhen N, Wessel GM. CRISPR-Cas9 editing of non-coding genomic loci as a means of controlling gene expression in the sea urchin. Dev Biol 2021; 472:85-97. [PMID: 33482173 PMCID: PMC7956150 DOI: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2021.01.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2020] [Revised: 01/11/2021] [Accepted: 01/11/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
We seek to manipulate gene function here through CRISPR-Cas9 editing of cis-regulatory sequences, rather than the more typical mutation of coding regions. This approach would minimize secondary effects of cellular responses to nonsense mediated decay pathways or to mutant protein products by premature stops. This strategy also allows for reducing gene activity in cases where a complete gene knockout would result in lethality, and it can be applied to the rapid identification of key regulatory sites essential for gene expression. We tested this strategy here with genes of known function as a proof of concept, and then applied it to examine the upstream genomic region of the germline gene Nanos2 in the sea urchin, Strongylocentrotus purpuratus. We first used CRISPR-Cas9 to target established genomic cis-regulatory regions of the skeletogenic cell transcription factor, Alx1, and the TGF-β signaling ligand, Nodal, which produce obvious developmental defects when altered in sea urchin embryos. Importantly, mutation of cis-activator sites (Alx1) and cis-repressor sites (Nodal) result in the predicted decreased and increased transcriptional output, respectively. Upon identification of efficient gRNAs by genomic mutations, we then used the same validated gRNAs to target a deadCas9-VP64 transcriptional activator to increase Nodal transcription directly. Finally, we paired these new methodologies with a more traditional, GFP reporter construct approach to further our understanding of the transcriptional regulation of Nanos2, a key gene required for germ cell identity in S. purpuratus. With a series of reporter assays, upstream Cas9-promoter targeted mutagenesis, coupled with qPCR and in situ RNA hybridization, we concluded that the promoter of Nanos2 drives strong mRNA expression in the sea urchin embryo, indicating that its primordial germ cell (PGC)-specific restriction may rely instead on post-transcriptional regulation. Overall, we present a proof-of-principle tool-kit of Cas9-mediated manipulations of promoter regions that should be applicable in most cells and embryos for which CRISPR-Cas9 is employed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alice Pieplow
- Department of Molecular Biology, Cellular Biology and Biochemistry, Brown University, Providence, RI, 02912, USA
| | - Meseret Dastaw
- Ethiopian Biotechnology Institute, Addis Ababa University, NBH1, 4killo King George VI St, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
| | - Tetsushi Sakuma
- Division of Integrated Sciences for Life, Graduate School of Integrated Sciences for Life, Hiroshima University, Hiroshima, 739-8526, Japan
| | - Naoaki Sakamoto
- Division of Integrated Sciences for Life, Graduate School of Integrated Sciences for Life, Hiroshima University, Hiroshima, 739-8526, Japan
| | - Takashi Yamamoto
- Division of Integrated Sciences for Life, Graduate School of Integrated Sciences for Life, Hiroshima University, Hiroshima, 739-8526, Japan
| | - Mamiko Yajima
- Department of Molecular Biology, Cellular Biology and Biochemistry, Brown University, Providence, RI, 02912, USA
| | - Nathalie Oulhen
- Department of Molecular Biology, Cellular Biology and Biochemistry, Brown University, Providence, RI, 02912, USA
| | - Gary M Wessel
- Department of Molecular Biology, Cellular Biology and Biochemistry, Brown University, Providence, RI, 02912, USA.
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Stundl J, Bertucci PY, Lauri A, Arendt D, Bronner ME. Evolution of new cell types at the lateral neural border. Curr Top Dev Biol 2021; 141:173-205. [PMID: 33602488 DOI: 10.1016/bs.ctdb.2020.11.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
During the course of evolution, animals have become increasingly complex by the addition of novel cell types and regulatory mechanisms. A prime example is represented by the lateral neural border, known as the neural plate border in vertebrates, a region of the developing ectoderm where presumptive neural and non-neural tissue meet. This region has been intensively studied as the source of two important embryonic cell types unique to vertebrates-the neural crest and the ectodermal placodes-which contribute to diverse differentiated cell types including the peripheral nervous system, pigment cells, bone, and cartilage. How did these multipotent progenitors originate in animal evolution? What triggered the elaboration of the border during the course of chordate evolution? How is the lateral neural border patterned in various bilaterians and what is its fate? Here, we review and compare the development and fate of the lateral neural border in vertebrates and invertebrates and we speculate about its evolutionary origin. Taken together, the data suggest that the lateral neural border existed in bilaterian ancestors prior to the origin of vertebrates and became a developmental source of exquisite evolutionary change that frequently enabled the acquisition of new cell types.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jan Stundl
- Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, United States
| | | | | | - Detlev Arendt
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory, Heidelberg, Germany.
| | - Marianne E Bronner
- Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, United States.
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Tsironis I, Paganos P, Gouvi G, Tsimpos P, Stamopoulou A, Arnone MI, Flytzanis CN. Coup-TF: A maternal factor essential for differentiation along the embryonic axes in the sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus. Dev Biol 2021; 475:131-144. [PMID: 33484706 DOI: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2020.12.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2020] [Revised: 11/27/2020] [Accepted: 12/11/2020] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
Abstract
Coup-TF, a member of the nuclear receptor super-family, is present in the pool of maternal mRNAs and proteins in the sea urchin egg. The presence of this protein seems to be essential for the execution of the early developmental program, leading to all three embryonic layers. Our results demonstrate that Pl-Coup-TF morphants, i.e. Pl-Coup-TF morpholino knockdown embryos, resemble blastulae that lack archenteron at 24 hpf (hours post fertilization), a stage at which normal embryos reach the end of gastrulation in Paracentrotus lividus. At 48 hpf, when normal embryos reach the pluteus larva stage, the morphants are seemingly underdeveloped and lack the characteristic skeletal rods. Nevertheless, the morphant embryos express vegetal endomesodermal marker genes, such as Pl-Blimp1, Pl-Endo16, Pl-Alx1 and Pl-Tbr as judged by in situ hybridization experiments. The anterior neuroectoderm genes, Pl-FoxQ2, Pl-Six3 and Pl-Pax6, are also expressed in the morphant embryos, but Pl-Hbn and Pl-Fez mRNAs, which encode proteins significant for the differentiation of serotonergic neurons, are not detected. Consequently, Pl-Coup-TF morphants at 48 hpf lack serotonergic neurons, whereas normal 48 hpf plutei exhibit the formation of two bilateral pairs of such neurons in the apical organ. Furthermore, genes indicative of the ciliary band formation, Pl-Hnf6, Pl-Dri, Pl-FoxG and Pl-Otx, are not expressed in Pl-Coup-TF morphants, suggesting the disruption of this neurogenic territory as well. In addition, the Pl-SynB gene, a marker of differentiated neurons, is silent leading to the hypothesis that Pl-Coup-TF morphants might lack all types of neurons. On the contrary, the genes expressing signaling molecules, which establish the ventral/dorsal axis, Pl-Nodal and Pl-Lefty show the characteristic ventral lateral expression pattern, Pl-Bmp2/4, which activates the dorsal ectoderm GRN is down-regulated and Pl-Chordin is aberrantly over-expressed in the entire ectoderm. The identity of ectodermal cells in Pl-Coup-TF morphant embryos, was probed for expression of the ventral marker Pl-Gsc which was over-expressed and dorsal markers, Pl-IrxA and Pl-Hox7, which were silent. Therefore, we propose that maternal Pl-Coup-TF is essential for correct dissemination of the early embryonic signaling along both animal/vegetal and ventral/dorsal axes. Limiting Pl-Coup-TF's quantity, results in an embryo without digestive and nervous systems, skeleton and ciliary band that cannot survive past the initial 48 h of development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ioannis Tsironis
- Department of Biology, University of Patras, Patras, 26500, Greece
| | - Periklis Paganos
- Department of Biology, University of Patras, Patras, 26500, Greece; Department of Biology and Evolution of Marine Organisms, Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Villa Comunale, 80121, Naples, Italy
| | - Georgia Gouvi
- Department of Biology, University of Patras, Patras, 26500, Greece
| | | | | | - Maria Ina Arnone
- Department of Biology and Evolution of Marine Organisms, Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Villa Comunale, 80121, Naples, Italy
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Floc'hlay S, Molina MD, Hernandez C, Haillot E, Thomas-Chollier M, Lepage T, Thieffry D. Deciphering and modelling the TGF-β signalling interplays specifying the dorsal-ventral axis of the sea urchin embryo. Development 2021; 148:dev.189944. [PMID: 33298464 DOI: 10.1242/dev.189944] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2020] [Accepted: 11/16/2020] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
During sea urchin development, secretion of Nodal and BMP2/4 ligands and their antagonists Lefty and Chordin from a ventral organiser region specifies the ventral and dorsal territories. This process relies on a complex interplay between the Nodal and BMP pathways through numerous regulatory circuits. To decipher the interplay between these pathways, we used a combination of treatments with recombinant Nodal and BMP2/4 proteins and a computational modelling approach. We assembled a logical model focusing on cell responses to signalling inputs along the dorsal-ventral axis, which was extended to cover ligand diffusion and enable multicellular simulations. Our model simulations accurately recapitulate gene expression in wild-type embryos, accounting for the specification of ventral ectoderm, ciliary band and dorsal ectoderm. Our model simulations further recapitulate various morphant phenotypes, reveal a dominance of the BMP pathway over the Nodal pathway and stress the crucial impact of the rate of Smad activation in dorsal-ventral patterning. These results emphasise the key role of the mutual antagonism between the Nodal and BMP2/4 pathways in driving early dorsal-ventral patterning of the sea urchin embryo.
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Affiliation(s)
- Swann Floc'hlay
- Department of Biology, Institut de Biologie de l'ENS (IBENS), École Normale Supérieure, CNRS, INSERM, Université PSL, 75005 Paris, France
| | | | - Céline Hernandez
- Department of Biology, Institut de Biologie de l'ENS (IBENS), École Normale Supérieure, CNRS, INSERM, Université PSL, 75005 Paris, France
| | - Emmanuel Haillot
- Institut Biologie Valrose, Université Côte d'Azur, 06108 Nice, France
| | - Morgane Thomas-Chollier
- Department of Biology, Institut de Biologie de l'ENS (IBENS), École Normale Supérieure, CNRS, INSERM, Université PSL, 75005 Paris, France.,Institut Universitaire de France (IUF), 75005 Paris, France
| | - Thierry Lepage
- Institut Biologie Valrose, Université Côte d'Azur, 06108 Nice, France
| | - Denis Thieffry
- Department of Biology, Institut de Biologie de l'ENS (IBENS), École Normale Supérieure, CNRS, INSERM, Université PSL, 75005 Paris, France
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Kozmikova I, Kozmik Z. Wnt/β-catenin signaling is an evolutionarily conserved determinant of chordate dorsal organizer. eLife 2020; 9:56817. [PMID: 32452768 PMCID: PMC7292647 DOI: 10.7554/elife.56817] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2020] [Accepted: 05/25/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Deciphering the mechanisms of axis formation in amphioxus is a key step to understanding the evolution of chordate body plan. The current view is that Nodal signaling is the only factor promoting the dorsal axis specification in the amphioxus, whereas Wnt/β-catenin signaling plays no role in this process. Here, we re-examined the role of Wnt/βcatenin signaling in the dorsal/ventral patterning of amphioxus embryo. We demonstrated that the spatial activity of Wnt/β-catenin signaling is located in presumptive dorsal cells from cleavage to gastrula stage, and provided functional evidence that Wnt/β-catenin signaling is necessary for the specification of dorsal cell fate in a stage-dependent manner. Microinjection of Wnt8 and Wnt11 mRNA induced ectopic dorsal axis in neurulae and larvae. Finally, we demonstrated that Nodal and Wnt/β-catenin signaling cooperate to promote the dorsal-specific gene expression in amphioxus gastrula. Our study reveals high evolutionary conservation of dorsal organizer formation in the chordate lineage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Iryna Kozmikova
- Laboratory of Transcriptional Regulation, Institute of Molecular Genetics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Zbynek Kozmik
- Laboratory of Transcriptional Regulation, Institute of Molecular Genetics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
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32
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Wang L, Israel JW, Edgar A, Raff RA, Raff EC, Byrne M, Wray GA. Genetic basis for divergence in developmental gene expression in two closely related sea urchins. Nat Ecol Evol 2020; 4:831-840. [PMID: 32284581 DOI: 10.1038/s41559-020-1165-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2019] [Accepted: 03/03/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
The genetic basis for divergence in developmental gene expression among species is poorly understood, despite growing evidence that such changes underlie many interesting traits. Here we quantify transcription in hybrids of Heliocidaris tuberculata and Heliocidaris erythrogramma, two closely related sea urchins with highly divergent developmental gene expression and life histories. We find that most expression differences between species result from genetic influences that affect one stage of development, indicating limited pleiotropic consequences for most mutations that contribute to divergence in gene expression. Activation of zygotic transcription is broadly delayed in H. erythrogramma, the species with the derived life history, despite its overall faster premetamorphic development. Altered expression of several terminal differentiation genes associated with the derived larval morphology of H. erythrogramma is based largely on differences in the expression or function of their upstream regulators, providing insights into the genetic basis for the evolution of key life history traits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lingyu Wang
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
| | | | - Allison Edgar
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Rudolf A Raff
- Department of Biology, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, USA
| | | | - Maria Byrne
- School of Medical Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.,School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Gregory A Wray
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA. .,Center for Genomic and Computational Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA.
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33
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Maternal factors regulating symmetry breaking and dorsal–ventral axis formation in the sea urchin embryo. Curr Top Dev Biol 2020; 140:283-316. [DOI: 10.1016/bs.ctdb.2019.10.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
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Hogan JD, Keenan JL, Luo L, Ibn-Salem J, Lamba A, Schatzberg D, Piacentino ML, Zuch DT, Core AB, Blumberg C, Timmermann B, Grau JH, Speranza E, Andrade-Navarro MA, Irie N, Poustka AJ, Bradham CA. The developmental transcriptome for Lytechinus variegatus exhibits temporally punctuated gene expression changes. Dev Biol 2019; 460:139-154. [PMID: 31816285 DOI: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2019.12.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/02/2019] [Revised: 12/03/2019] [Accepted: 12/04/2019] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
Embryonic development is arguably the most complex process an organism undergoes during its lifetime, and understanding this complexity is best approached with a systems-level perspective. The sea urchin has become a highly valuable model organism for understanding developmental specification, morphogenesis, and evolution. As a non-chordate deuterostome, the sea urchin occupies an important evolutionary niche between protostomes and vertebrates. Lytechinus variegatus (Lv) is an Atlantic species that has been well studied, and which has provided important insights into signal transduction, patterning, and morphogenetic changes during embryonic and larval development. The Pacific species, Strongylocentrotus purpuratus (Sp), is another well-studied sea urchin, particularly for gene regulatory networks (GRNs) and cis-regulatory analyses. A well-annotated genome and transcriptome for Sp are available, but similar resources have not been developed for Lv. Here, we provide an analysis of the Lv transcriptome at 11 timepoints during embryonic and larval development. Temporal analysis suggests that the gene regulatory networks that underlie specification are well-conserved among sea urchin species. We show that the major transitions in variation of embryonic transcription divide the developmental time series into four distinct, temporally sequential phases. Our work shows that sea urchin development occurs via sequential intervals of relatively stable gene expression states that are punctuated by abrupt transitions.
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Affiliation(s)
- John D Hogan
- Program in Bioinformatics, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA
| | | | - Lingqi Luo
- Program in Bioinformatics, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Jonas Ibn-Salem
- Evolution and Development Group, Max-Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics, Berlin, Germany; Faculty of Biology, Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz, Mainz, Germany
| | - Arjun Lamba
- Biology Department, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA
| | | | - Michael L Piacentino
- Program in Molecular and Cellular Biology and Biochemistry, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Daniel T Zuch
- Program in Molecular and Cellular Biology and Biochemistry, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Amanda B Core
- Biology Department, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA
| | | | - Bernd Timmermann
- Sequencing Core Facility, Max-Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics, Berlin, Germany
| | - José Horacio Grau
- Dahlem Centre for Genome Research and Medical Systems Biology, Environmental and Phylogenomics Group, Berlin, Germany; Museum für Naturkunde Berlin, Leibniz-Institut für Evolutions- und Biodiversitätsforschung, Berlin, Germany
| | - Emily Speranza
- Program in Bioinformatics, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA
| | | | - Naoki Irie
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Albert J Poustka
- Evolution and Development Group, Max-Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics, Berlin, Germany; Dahlem Centre for Genome Research and Medical Systems Biology, Environmental and Phylogenomics Group, Berlin, Germany
| | - Cynthia A Bradham
- Program in Bioinformatics, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA; Biology Department, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA; Program in Molecular and Cellular Biology and Biochemistry, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA.
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Zhang H, Chen S, Shang C, Wu X, Wang Y, Li G. Interplay between Lefty and Nodal signaling is essential for the organizer and axial formation in amphioxus embryos. Dev Biol 2019; 456:63-73. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2019.08.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2019] [Revised: 08/12/2019] [Accepted: 08/12/2019] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
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Abstract
Gastrulation is arguably the most important evolutionary innovation in the animal kingdom. This process provides the basic embryonic architecture, an inner layer separated from an outer layer, from which all animal forms arise. An extraordinarily simple and elegant process of gastrulation is observed in the sea urchin embryo. The cells participating in sea urchin gastrulation are specified early during cleavage. One outcome of that specification is the expression of transcription factors that control each of the many subsequent morphogenetic changes. The first of these movements is an epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) of skeletogenic mesenchyme cells, then EMT of pigment cell progenitors. Shortly thereafter, invagination of the archenteron occurs. At the end of archenteron extension, a second wave of EMT occurs to release immune cells into the blastocoel and primordial germ cells that will home to the coelomic pouches. The archenteron then remodels to establish the three parts of the gut, and at the anterior end, the gut fuses with the stomodaeum to form the through-gut. As part of the anterior remodeling, mesodermal coelomic pouches bud off the lateral sides of the archenteron tip. Multiple cell biological processes conduct each of these movements and in some cases the upstream transcription factors controlling this process have been identified. Remarkably, each event seamlessly occurs at the right time to orchestrate formation of the primitive body plan. This review covers progress toward understanding many of the molecular mechanisms underlying this sequence of morphogenetic events.
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Redox regulation of development and regeneration. Curr Opin Genet Dev 2019; 57:9-15. [DOI: 10.1016/j.gde.2019.06.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2019] [Revised: 05/29/2019] [Accepted: 06/03/2019] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
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BMP controls dorsoventral and neural patterning in indirect-developing hemichordates providing insight into a possible origin of chordates. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2019; 116:12925-12932. [PMID: 31189599 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1901919116] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
A defining feature of chordates is the unique presence of a dorsal hollow neural tube that forms by internalization of the ectodermal neural plate specified via inhibition of BMP signaling during gastrulation. While BMP controls dorsoventral (DV) patterning across diverse bilaterians, the BMP-active side is ventral in chordates and dorsal in many other bilaterians. How this phylum-specific DV inversion occurs and whether it is coupled to the emergence of the dorsal neural plate are unknown. Here we explore these questions by investigating an indirect-developing enteropneust from the hemichordate phylum, which together with echinoderms form a sister group of the chordates. We found that in the hemichordate larva, BMP signaling is required for DV patterning and is sufficient to repress neurogenesis. We also found that transient overactivation of BMP signaling during gastrulation concomitantly blocked mouth formation and centralized the nervous system to the ventral ectoderm in both hemichordate and sea urchin larvae. Moreover, this mouthless, neurogenic ventral ectoderm displayed a medial-to-lateral organization similar to that of the chordate neural plate. Thus, indirect-developing deuterostomes use BMP signaling in DV and neural patterning, and an elevated BMP level during gastrulation drives pronounced morphological changes reminiscent of a DV inversion. These findings provide a mechanistic basis to support the hypothesis that an inverse chordate body plan emerged from an indirect-developing ancestor by tinkering with BMP signaling.
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Slota LA, Miranda EM, McClay DR. Spatial and temporal patterns of gene expression during neurogenesis in the sea urchin Lytechinus variegatus. EvoDevo 2019; 10:2. [PMID: 30792836 PMCID: PMC6371548 DOI: 10.1186/s13227-019-0115-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2018] [Accepted: 01/30/2019] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The sea urchin is a basal deuterostome that is more closely related to vertebrates than many organisms traditionally used to study neurogenesis. This phylogenetic position means that the sea urchin can provide insights into the evolution of the nervous system by helping resolve which developmental processes are deuterostome innovations, which are innovations in other clades, and which are ancestral. However, the nervous system of echinoderms is one of the least understood of all major metazoan phyla. To gain insights into echinoderm neurogenesis, spatial and temporal gene expression data are essential. Then, functional data will enable the building of a detailed gene regulatory network for neurogenesis in the sea urchin that can be compared across metazoans to resolve questions about how nervous systems evolved. RESULTS Here, we analyze spatiotemporal gene expression during sea urchin neurogenesis for genes that have been shown to be neurogenic in one or more species. We report the expression of 21 genes expressed in areas of neurogenesis in the sea urchin embryo from blastula stage (just before neural progenitors begin their specification sequence) through pluteus larval stage (when much of the nervous system has been patterned). Among those 21 gene expression patterns, we report expression of 11 transcription factors and 2 axon guidance genes, each expressed in discrete domains in the neuroectoderm or in the endoderm. Most of these genes are expressed in and around the ciliary band. Some including the transcription factors Lv-mbx, Lv-dmrt, Lv-islet, and Lv-atbf1, the nuclear protein Lv-prohibitin, and the guidance molecule Lv-semaa are expressed in the endoderm where they are presumably involved in neurogenesis in the gut. CONCLUSIONS This study builds a foundation to study how neurons are specified and evolved by analyzing spatial and temporal gene expression during neurogenesis in a basal deuterostome. With these expression patterns, we will be able to understand what genes are required for neural development in the sea urchin. These data can be used as a starting point to (1) build a spatial gene regulatory network for sea urchin neurogenesis, (2) identify how subtypes of neurons are specified, (3) perform comparative studies with the sea urchin, protostome, and vertebrate organisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leslie A. Slota
- Department of Biology, Duke University, 124 Science Dr., Box 90338, Durham, NC 27708 USA
| | - Esther M. Miranda
- Department of Biology, Duke University, 124 Science Dr., Box 90338, Durham, NC 27708 USA
| | - David R. McClay
- Department of Biology, Duke University, 124 Science Dr., Box 90338, Durham, NC 27708 USA
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40
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Reference assembly and gene expression analysis of Apostichopus japonicus larval development. Sci Rep 2019; 9:1131. [PMID: 30718912 PMCID: PMC6362246 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-37755-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2018] [Accepted: 12/13/2018] [Indexed: 01/31/2023] Open
Abstract
The transcriptome of the holothurian Apostichopus japonicus was sequenced at four developmental stages—blastula, gastrula, auricularia, pentactula—on an Illumina sequencer. Based on our RNA-seq data and the paired-end reads from 16 libraries obtained by other researchers earlier, we have achieved the currently most complete transcriptome assembly for A. japonicus with the best basic statistical parameters. An analysis of the obtained transcriptome has revealed 174 differentially expressed transcription factors, as well as stage-specific transcription factors that are most promising for further study. In addition, a total of 1,174,999 high-quality single nucleotide polymorphisms have been identified, including 58,932 indels. A GO enrichment analysis of contigs containing polymorphic loci shows the predominance of GO terms associated with immune response. The data obtained by us provide an additional basis for a deeper study of the mechanisms of the planktotrophic-type development in holothurians and can be used in commercial sea cucumber breeding programs.
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Molina MD, Gache C, Lepage T. Expression of exogenous mRNAs to study gene function in echinoderm embryos. Methods Cell Biol 2019; 151:239-282. [PMID: 30948011 DOI: 10.1016/bs.mcb.2018.10.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
Abstract
With the completion of the genome sequencing projects, a new challenge for developmental biologists is to assign a function to the thousands of genes identified. Expression of exogenous mRNAs is a powerful, versatile and rapid technique that can be used to study gene function during development of the sea urchin. This chapter describes how this technique can be used to analyze gene function in echinoderm embryos, how it can be combined with cell transplantation to perform mosaic analysis and how it can be applied to identify downstream targets genes of transcription factors and signaling pathways. We describe specific examples of the use of overexpression of mRNA to analyze gene function, mention the benefits and current limitations of the technique and emphasize the importance of using different controls to assess the specificity of the effects observed. Finally, this chapter details the different steps, vectors and protocols for in vitro production of mRNA and phenotypic analysis.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Christian Gache
- Université Pierre et Marie Curie, Observatoire Océanologique de Villefranche sur Mer, UMR7009 CNRS, Paris, France
| | - Thierry Lepage
- Université Côte d'Azur, CNRS, INSERM, iBV, Nice, France.
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Yasuoka Y, Tando Y, Kubokawa K, Taira M. Evolution of cis-regulatory modules for the head organizer gene goosecoid in chordates: comparisons between Branchiostoma and Xenopus. ZOOLOGICAL LETTERS 2019; 5:27. [PMID: 31388442 PMCID: PMC6679436 DOI: 10.1186/s40851-019-0143-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/30/2018] [Accepted: 07/12/2019] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND In cephalochordates (amphioxus), the notochord runs along the dorsal to the anterior tip of the body. In contrast, the vertebrate head is formed anterior to the notochord, as a result of head organizer formation in anterior mesoderm during early development. A key gene for the vertebrate head organizer, goosecoid (gsc), is broadly expressed in the dorsal mesoderm of amphioxus gastrula. Amphioxus gsc expression subsequently becomes restricted to the posterior notochord from the early neurula. This has prompted the hypothesis that a change in expression patterns of gsc led to development of the vertebrate head during chordate evolution. However, molecular mechanisms of head organizer evolution involving gsc have never been elucidated. RESULTS To address this question, we compared cis-regulatory modules of vertebrate organizer genes between amphioxus, Branchiostoma japonicum, and frogs, Xenopus laevis and Xenopus tropicalis. Here we show conservation and diversification of gene regulatory mechanisms through cis-regulatory modules for gsc, lim1/lhx1, and chordin in Branchiostoma and Xenopus. Reporter analysis using Xenopus embryos demonstrates that activation of gsc by Nodal/FoxH1 signal through the 5' upstream region, that of lim1 by Nodal/FoxH1 signal through the first intron, and that of chordin by Lim1 through the second intron, are conserved between amphioxus and Xenopus. However, activation of gsc by Lim1 and Otx through the 5' upstream region in Xenopus are not conserved in amphioxus. Furthermore, the 5' region of amphioxus gsc recapitulated the amphioxus-like posterior mesoderm expression of the reporter gene in transgenic Xenopus embryos. CONCLUSIONS On the basis of this study, we propose a model, in which the gsc gene acquired the cis-regulatory module bound with Lim1 and Otx at its 5' upstream region to be activated persistently in anterior mesoderm, in the vertebrate lineage. Because Gsc globally represses trunk (notochord) genes in the vertebrate head organizer, this cooption of gsc in vertebrates appears to have resulted in inhibition of trunk genes and acquisition of the head organizer and its derivative prechordal plate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuuri Yasuoka
- Department of Biological Sciences, Graduate School of Science, University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-0033 Japan
- Marine Genomics Unit, Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, 1919-1 Tancha, Onna-son, Okinawa, 904-0495 Japan
- Laboratory for Comprehensive Genomic Analysis, RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences, 1-7-22 Suehiro-cho, Tsurumi-ku, Yokohama, 230-0045 Japan
| | - Yukiko Tando
- Center for Advance Marine Research, Ocean Research Institute, The University of Tokyo, 1-15-1, Minamidai, Nakano-ku, Tokyo, 164-8639 Japan
- Present address: Cell Resource Center for Biomedical Research, Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer (IDAC), Tohoku University, 4-1 Seiryo-machi, Aoba-ku, Sendai, Miyagi 980-8575 Japan
| | - Kaoru Kubokawa
- Center for Advance Marine Research, Ocean Research Institute, The University of Tokyo, 1-15-1, Minamidai, Nakano-ku, Tokyo, 164-8639 Japan
- Present address: SIRC, Teikyo University, 2-11-1, Itabashi-ku, Tokyo, 173-8605 Japan
| | - Masanori Taira
- Department of Biological Sciences, Graduate School of Science, University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-0033 Japan
- Present address: Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Chuo University, 1-13-27 Kasuga, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 112-8551 Japan
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McClay DR, Miranda E, Feinberg SL. Neurogenesis in the sea urchin embryo is initiated uniquely in three domains. Development 2018; 145:dev167742. [PMID: 30413529 PMCID: PMC6240313 DOI: 10.1242/dev.167742] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2018] [Accepted: 09/25/2018] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Many marine larvae begin feeding within a day of fertilization, thus requiring rapid development of a nervous system to coordinate feeding activities. Here, we examine the patterning and specification of early neurogenesis in sea urchin embryos. Lineage analysis indicates that neurons arise locally in three regions of the embryo. Perturbation analyses showed that when patterning is disrupted, neurogenesis in the three regions is differentially affected, indicating distinct patterning requirements for each neural domain. Six transcription factors that function during proneural specification were identified and studied in detail. Perturbations of these proneural transcription factors showed that specification occurs differently in each neural domain prior to the Delta-Notch restriction signal. Though gene regulatory network state changes beyond the proneural restriction are largely unresolved, the data here show that the three neural regions already differ from each other significantly early in specification. Future studies that define the larval nervous system in the sea urchin must therefore separately characterize the three populations of neurons that enable the larva to feed, to navigate, and to move food particles through the gut.
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Affiliation(s)
- David R McClay
- Department of Biology, 124 Science Drive, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Esther Miranda
- Department of Biology, 124 Science Drive, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Stacy L Feinberg
- Department of Biology, 124 Science Drive, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
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Molina MD, Quirin M, Haillot E, De Crozé N, Range R, Rouel M, Jimenez F, Amrouche R, Chessel A, Lepage T. MAPK and GSK3/ß-TRCP-mediated degradation of the maternal Ets domain transcriptional repressor Yan/Tel controls the spatial expression of nodal in the sea urchin embryo. PLoS Genet 2018; 14:e1007621. [PMID: 30222786 PMCID: PMC6160229 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1007621] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2018] [Revised: 09/27/2018] [Accepted: 08/10/2018] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
In the sea urchin embryo, specification of the dorsal-ventral axis critically relies on the spatially restricted expression of nodal in the presumptive ventral ectoderm. The ventral restriction of nodal expression requires the activity of the maternal TGF-β ligand Panda but the mechanism by which Panda restricts nodal expression is unknown. Similarly, what initiates expression of nodal in the ectoderm and what are the mechanisms that link patterning along the primary and secondary axes is not well understood. We report that in Paracentrotus lividus, the activity of the maternally expressed ETS-domain transcription factor Yan/Tel is essential for the spatial restriction of nodal. Inhibiting translation of maternal yan/tel mRNA disrupted dorsal-ventral patterning in all germ layers by causing a massive ectopic expression of nodal starting from cleavage stages, mimicking the phenotype caused by inactivation of the maternal Nodal antagonist Panda. We show that like in the fly or in vertebrates, the activity of sea urchin Yan/Tel is regulated by phosphorylation by MAP kinases. However, unlike in the fly or in vertebrates, phosphorylation by GSK3 plays a central role in the regulation Yan/Tel stability in the sea urchin. We show that GSK3 phosphorylates Yan/Tel in vitro at two different sites including a β-TRCP ubiquitin ligase degradation motif and a C-terminal Ser/Thr rich cluster and that phosphorylation of Yan/Tel by GSK3 triggers its degradation by a β-TRCP/proteasome pathway. Finally, we show that, Yan is epistatic to Panda and that the activity of Yan/Tel is required downstream of Panda to restrict nodal expression. Our results identify Yan/Tel as a central regulator of the spatial expression of nodal in Paracentrotus lividus and uncover a key interaction between the gene regulatory networks responsible for patterning the embryo along the dorsal-ventral and animal-vegetal axes. Specification of the embryonic axes is an essential step during early development of metazoa. In the sea urchin embryo, specification of the dorsal-ventral axis critically relies on the spatial restriction of the expression of the TGF-ß family member Nodal in ventral cells, a process that requires the activity of the maternal determinant Panda. How the spatially restricted expression of nodal is established downstream of Panda is not well understood. We have discovered that, in the Mediterranean sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus, the spatial restriction of nodal on the ventral side of the embryo requires the inhibitory activity of a transcriptional repressor named Yan/Tel. This finding suggests a molecular mechanism for the control of nodal expression by the release of a repression. We found that this release requires the activity of two families of kinases that we identified as the MAP kinases and GSK3, a kinase which, intriguingly, was previously known as a key regulator of patterning along the animal-vegetal axis. We discovered that phosphorylation by MAPK and GSK3 triggers degradation of Yan/Tel by a β-TRCP proteasome pathway. Finally, we find that Yan/Tel likely acts downstream of Panda in the hierarchy of genes required for nodal restriction. Our study therefore identifies Yan/Tel as a new essential regulator of nodal expression downstream of Panda and identifies a novel key interaction between the gene regulatory networks responsible for patterning along the primary and secondary axis of polarity.
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Affiliation(s)
- M. Dolores Molina
- Department of Natural Sciences, Institut Biologie Valrose, Université Côte d’Azur, Nice, France
| | - Magali Quirin
- Department of Natural Sciences, Institut Biologie Valrose, Université Côte d’Azur, Nice, France
| | - Emmanuel Haillot
- Department of Natural Sciences, Institut Biologie Valrose, Université Côte d’Azur, Nice, France
| | - Noémie De Crozé
- Department of Natural Sciences, Institut Biologie Valrose, Université Côte d’Azur, Nice, France
| | - Ryan Range
- Department of Biological Sciences, Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama, United States of America
| | - Mathieu Rouel
- Department of Natural Sciences, Institut Biologie Valrose, Université Côte d’Azur, Nice, France
| | - Felipe Jimenez
- Department of Natural Sciences, Institut Biologie Valrose, Université Côte d’Azur, Nice, France
| | - Radja Amrouche
- Department of Natural Sciences, Institut Biologie Valrose, Université Côte d’Azur, Nice, France
| | - Aline Chessel
- Department of Natural Sciences, Institut Biologie Valrose, Université Côte d’Azur, Nice, France
| | - Thierry Lepage
- Department of Natural Sciences, Institut Biologie Valrose, Université Côte d’Azur, Nice, France
- * E-mail:
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Suzuki H, Yaguchi S. Transforming growth factor-β signal regulates gut bending in the sea urchin embryo. Dev Growth Differ 2018; 60:216-225. [PMID: 29878318 DOI: 10.1111/dgd.12434] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2018] [Revised: 03/17/2018] [Accepted: 03/29/2018] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
During gastrulation, one of the most important morphogenetic events in sea urchin embryogenesis, the gut bends toward the ventral side to form an open mouth. Although the involvement of transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) signals in the cell-fate specification of the ectoderm and endoderm along the dorsal-ventral axis has been well reported, it remains unclear what controls the morphogenetic behavior of gut bending. Here, using two sea urchin species, Hemicentrotus pulcherrimus and Temnopleurus reevesii, we show that TGF-β signals are required for gut bending toward the ventral side. To search for the common morphogenetic cue in these two species, we initially confirmed the expression patterns of the dorsal-ventral regulatory TGF-β members, nodal, lefty, bmp2/4, and chordin, in T. reevesii because these factors are appropriate candidates to investigate the cue that starts gut bending, although genetic information about the body axes is entirely lacking in this species. Based on their expression patterns and a functional analysis of Nodal, the dorsal-ventral axis formation of T. reevesii is likely regulated by these TGF-β members, as in other sea urchins. When the Alk4/5/7 signal was inhibited by its specific inhibitor, SB431542, before the late gastrula stage of T. reevesii, the gut was extended straight toward the anterior tip region, although the ectodermal dorsal-ventral polarity was normal. By contrast, H. pulcherrimus gut bending was sensitive to SB431542 until the prism stage. These data clearly indicate that gut bending is commonly dependent on a TGF-β signal in sea urchins, but the timing of the response varies in different species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Haruka Suzuki
- Shimoda Marine Research Center, University of Tsukuba, Shimoda, Japan
| | - Shunsuke Yaguchi
- Shimoda Marine Research Center, University of Tsukuba, Shimoda, Japan
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Cui M, Lin CY, Su YH. Recent advances in functional perturbation and genome editing techniques in studying sea urchin development. Brief Funct Genomics 2018; 16:309-318. [PMID: 28605407 DOI: 10.1093/bfgp/elx011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Studies on the gene regulatory networks (GRNs) of sea urchin embryos have provided a basic understanding of the molecular mechanisms controlling animal development. The causal links in GRNs have been verified experimentally through perturbation of gene functions. Microinjection of antisense morpholino oligonucleotides (MOs) into the egg is the most widely used approach for gene knockdown in sea urchin embryos. The modification of MOs into a membrane-permeable form (vivo-MOs) has allowed gene knockdown at later developmental stages. Recent advances in genome editing tools, such as zinc-finger nucleases, transcription activator-like effector-based nucleases and the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeat/clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeat-associated protein 9 (CRISPR/Cas9) system, have provided methods for gene knockout in sea urchins. Here, we review the use of vivo-MOs and genome editing tools in sea urchin studies since the publication of its genome in 2006. Various applications of the CRISPR/Cas9 system and their potential in studying sea urchin development are also discussed. These new tools will provide more sophisticated experimental methods for studying sea urchin development.
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Hinman VF, Burke RD. Embryonic neurogenesis in echinoderms. WILEY INTERDISCIPLINARY REVIEWS-DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY 2018; 7:e316. [PMID: 29470839 DOI: 10.1002/wdev.316] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/10/2017] [Revised: 12/20/2017] [Accepted: 12/21/2017] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
The phylogenetic position of echinoderms is well suited to revealing shared features of deuterostomes that distinguish them from other bilaterians. Although echinoderm neurobiology remains understudied, genomic resources, molecular methods, and systems approaches have enabled progress in understanding mechanisms of embryonic neurogenesis. Even though the morphology of echinoderm larvae is diverse, larval nervous systems, which arise during gastrulation, have numerous similarities in their organization. Diverse neural subtypes and specialized sensory neurons have been identified and details of neuroanatomy using neuron-specific labels provide hypotheses for neural function. The early patterning of ectoderm and specification of axes has been well studied in several species and underlying gene regulatory networks have been established. The cells giving rise to central and peripheral neural components have been identified in urchins and sea stars. Neurogenesis includes typical metazoan features of asymmetric division of neural progenitors and in some cases limited proliferation of neural precursors. Delta/Notch signaling has been identified as having critical roles in regulating neural patterning and differentiation. Several transcription factors functioning in pro-neural phases of specification, neural differentiation, and sub-type specification have been identified and structural or functional components of neurons are used as differentiation markers. Several methods for altering expression in embryos have revealed aspects of a regulatory hierarchy of transcription factors in neurogenesis. Interfacing neurogenic gene regulatory networks to the networks regulating ectodermal domains and identifying the spatial and temporal inputs that pattern the larval nervous system is a major challenge that will contribute substantially to our understanding of the evolution of metazoan nervous systems. This article is categorized under: Comparative Development and Evolution > Model Systems Comparative Development and Evolution > Body Plan Evolution Early Embryonic Development > Gastrulation and Neurulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Veronica F Hinman
- Department of Biological Sciences, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
| | - Robert D Burke
- Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology, University of Victoria, Victoria, Canada
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48
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Morov AR, Ukizintambara T, Sabirov RM, Yasui K. Acquisition of the dorsal structures in chordate amphioxus. Open Biol 2017; 6:rsob.160062. [PMID: 27307516 PMCID: PMC4929940 DOI: 10.1098/rsob.160062] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/16/2016] [Accepted: 05/17/2016] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Acquisition of dorsal structures, such as notochord and hollow nerve cord, is likely to have had a profound influence upon vertebrate evolution. Dorsal formation in chordate development thus has been intensively studied in vertebrates and ascidians. However, the present understanding does not explain how chordates acquired dorsal structures. Here we show that amphioxus retains a key clue to answer this question. In amphioxus embryos, maternal nodal mRNA distributes asymmetrically in accordance with the remodelling of the cortical cytoskeleton in the fertilized egg, and subsequently lefty is first expressed in a patch of blastomeres across the equator where wnt8 is expressed circularly and which will become the margin of the blastopore. The lefty domain co-expresses zygotic nodal by the initial gastrula stage on the one side of the blastopore margin and induces the expression of goosecoid, not-like, chordin and brachyury1 genes in this region, as in the oral ectoderm of sea urchin embryos, which provides a basis for the formation of the dorsal structures. The striking similarity in the gene regulations and their respective expression domains when comparing dorsal formation in amphioxus and the determination of the oral ectoderm in sea urchin embryos suggests that chordates derived from an ambulacrarian-type blastula with dorsoventral inversion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arseniy R Morov
- Department of Biological Science, Graduate School of Science, Hiroshima University, 1-3-1, Kagamiyama, Higashi-Hiroshima, Hiroshima 739-8526, Japan Department of Zoology and General Biology, Institute of Fundamental Medicine and Biology, Kazan (Volga Region) Federal University, 18 Kremlyovskaya Street, Kazan 420008, Republic of Tatarstan, Russian Federation
| | - Tharcisse Ukizintambara
- Department of Biological Science, Graduate School of Science, Hiroshima University, 1-3-1, Kagamiyama, Higashi-Hiroshima, Hiroshima 739-8526, Japan
| | - Rushan M Sabirov
- Department of Zoology and General Biology, Institute of Fundamental Medicine and Biology, Kazan (Volga Region) Federal University, 18 Kremlyovskaya Street, Kazan 420008, Republic of Tatarstan, Russian Federation
| | - Kinya Yasui
- Department of Biological Science, Graduate School of Science, Hiroshima University, 1-3-1, Kagamiyama, Higashi-Hiroshima, Hiroshima 739-8526, Japan
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Mellott DO, Thisdelle J, Burke RD. Notch signaling patterns neurogenic ectoderm and regulates the asymmetric division of neural progenitors in sea urchin embryos. Development 2017; 144:3602-3611. [PMID: 28851710 DOI: 10.1242/dev.151720] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2017] [Accepted: 08/21/2017] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
We have examined regulation of neurogenesis by Delta/Notch signaling in sea urchin embryos. At gastrulation, neural progenitors enter S phase coincident with expression of Sp-SoxC. We used a BAC containing GFP knocked into the Sp-SoxC locus to label neural progenitors. Live imaging and immunolocalizations indicate that Sp-SoxC-expressing cells divide to produce pairs of adjacent cells expressing GFP. Over an interval of about 6 h, one cell fragments, undergoes apoptosis and expresses high levels of activated Caspase3. A Notch reporter indicates that Notch signaling is activated in cells adjacent to cells expressing Sp-SoxC. Inhibition of γ-secretase, injection of Sp-Delta morpholinos or CRISPR/Cas9-induced mutation of Sp-Delta results in supernumerary neural progenitors and neurons. Interfering with Notch signaling increases neural progenitor recruitment and pairs of neural progenitors. Thus, Notch signaling restricts the number of neural progenitors recruited and regulates the fate of progeny of the asymmetric division. We propose a model in which localized signaling converts ectodermal and ciliary band cells to neural progenitors that divide asymmetrically to produce a neural precursor and an apoptotic cell.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dan O Mellott
- Biochemistry and Microbiology, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada V8W 2Y2
| | - Jordan Thisdelle
- Biochemistry and Microbiology, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada V8W 2Y2
| | - Robert D Burke
- Biochemistry and Microbiology, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada V8W 2Y2
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Malik A, Gildor T, Sher N, Layous M, Ben-Tabou de-Leon S. Parallel embryonic transcriptional programs evolve under distinct constraints and may enable morphological conservation amidst adaptation. Dev Biol 2017; 430:202-213. [PMID: 28780048 DOI: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2017.07.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2017] [Revised: 07/13/2017] [Accepted: 07/26/2017] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
Embryonic development evolves by balancing stringent morphological constraints with genetic and environmental variation. The design principle that allows developmental transcriptional programs to conserve embryonic morphology while adapting to environmental changes is still not fully understood. To address this fundamental challenge, we compare developmental transcriptomes of two sea urchin species, Paracentrotus lividus and Strongylocentrotus purpuratus, that shared a common ancestor about 40 million years ago and are geographically distant yet show similar morphology. We find that both developmental and housekeeping genes show highly dynamic and strongly conserved temporal expression patterns. The expression of other gene sets, including homeostasis and response genes, show divergent expression which could result from either evolutionary drift or adaptation to local environmental conditions. The interspecies correlations of developmental gene expressions are highest between morphologically similar developmental time points whereas the interspecies correlations of housekeeping gene expression are high between all the late zygotic time points. Relatedly, the position of the phylotypic stage varies between these two groups of genes: developmental gene expression shows highest conservation at mid-developmental stage, in agreement with the hourglass model while the conservation of housekeeping genes keeps increasing with developmental time. When all genes are combined, the relationship between conservation of gene expression and morphological similarity is partially masked by housekeeping genes and genes with diverged expression. Our study illustrates various transcriptional programs that coexist in the developing embryo and evolve under different constraints. Apparently, morphological constraints underlie the conservation of developmental gene expression while embryonic fitness requires the conservation of housekeeping gene expression and the species-specific adjustments of homeostasis gene expression. The distinct evolutionary forces acting on these transcriptional programs enable the conservation of similar body plans while allowing adaption.
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Affiliation(s)
- Assaf Malik
- Bionformatics Core Unit, University of Haifa, Haifa 31905, Israel
| | - Tsvia Gildor
- Department of Marine Biology, Leon H. Charney School of Marine Sciences, University of Haifa, Haifa 31905, Israel
| | - Noa Sher
- Bionformatics Core Unit, University of Haifa, Haifa 31905, Israel
| | - Majed Layous
- Department of Marine Biology, Leon H. Charney School of Marine Sciences, University of Haifa, Haifa 31905, Israel
| | - Smadar Ben-Tabou de-Leon
- Department of Marine Biology, Leon H. Charney School of Marine Sciences, University of Haifa, Haifa 31905, Israel
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