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Styfhals R, Zolotarov G, Hulselmans G, Spanier KI, Poovathingal S, Elagoz AM, De Winter S, Deryckere A, Rajewsky N, Ponte G, Fiorito G, Aerts S, Seuntjens E. Cell type diversity in a developing octopus brain. Nat Commun 2022; 13:7392. [PMID: 36450803 PMCID: PMC9712504 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-35198-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2022] [Accepted: 11/22/2022] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Octopuses are mollusks that have evolved intricate neural systems comparable with vertebrates in terms of cell number, complexity and size. The brain cell types that control their sophisticated behavioral repertoire are still unknown. Here, we profile the cell diversity of the paralarval Octopus vulgaris brain to build a cell type atlas that comprises mostly neural cells, but also multiple glial subtypes, endothelial cells and fibroblasts. We spatially map cell types to the vertical, subesophageal and optic lobes. Investigation of cell type conservation reveals a shared gene signature between glial cells of mouse, fly and octopus. Genes related to learning and memory are enriched in vertical lobe cells, which show molecular similarities with Kenyon cells in Drosophila. We construct a cell type taxonomy revealing transcriptionally related cell types, which tend to appear in the same brain region. Together, our data sheds light on cell type diversity and evolution in the octopus brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruth Styfhals
- Laboratory of Developmental Neurobiology, Department of Biology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
- Department of Biology and Evolution of Marine Organisms, Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Naples, Italy
| | - Grygoriy Zolotarov
- Laboratory for Systems Biology of Gene Regulatory Elements, Berlin Institute for Systems Biology, Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association, Hannoversche Str. 28, 10115, Berlin, Germany
| | - Gert Hulselmans
- Department of Human Genetics, KU Leuven, Leuven, 3000, Belgium
- VIB Center for Brain & Disease Research, KU Leuven, Leuven, 3000, Belgium
| | - Katina I Spanier
- Department of Human Genetics, KU Leuven, Leuven, 3000, Belgium
- VIB Center for Brain & Disease Research, KU Leuven, Leuven, 3000, Belgium
| | | | - Ali M Elagoz
- Laboratory of Developmental Neurobiology, Department of Biology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Seppe De Winter
- Department of Human Genetics, KU Leuven, Leuven, 3000, Belgium
- VIB Center for Brain & Disease Research, KU Leuven, Leuven, 3000, Belgium
| | - Astrid Deryckere
- Laboratory of Developmental Neurobiology, Department of Biology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
- Department of Biological Sciences, Columbia University, New York, US
| | - Nikolaus Rajewsky
- Laboratory for Systems Biology of Gene Regulatory Elements, Berlin Institute for Systems Biology, Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association, Hannoversche Str. 28, 10115, Berlin, Germany
- Department of Pediatric Oncology/Hematology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Giovanna Ponte
- Department of Biology and Evolution of Marine Organisms, Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Naples, Italy
| | - Graziano Fiorito
- Department of Biology and Evolution of Marine Organisms, Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Naples, Italy
| | - Stein Aerts
- Department of Human Genetics, KU Leuven, Leuven, 3000, Belgium
- VIB Center for Brain & Disease Research, KU Leuven, Leuven, 3000, Belgium
| | - Eve Seuntjens
- Laboratory of Developmental Neurobiology, Department of Biology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
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Zolotarov G, Fromm B, Legnini I, Ayoub S, Polese G, Maselli V, Chabot PJ, Vinther J, Styfhals R, Seuntjens E, Di Cosmo A, Peterson KJ, Rajewsky N. MicroRNAs are deeply linked to the emergence of the complex octopus brain. Sci Adv 2022; 8:eadd9938. [PMID: 36427315 PMCID: PMC9699675 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.add9938] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/18/2022] [Accepted: 10/27/2022] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
Soft-bodied cephalopods such as octopuses are exceptionally intelligent invertebrates with a highly complex nervous system that evolved independently from vertebrates. Because of elevated RNA editing in their nervous tissues, we hypothesized that RNA regulation may play a major role in the cognitive success of this group. We thus profiled messenger RNAs and small RNAs in three cephalopod species including 18 tissues of the Octopus vulgaris. We show that the major RNA innovation of soft-bodied cephalopods is an expansion of the microRNA (miRNA) gene repertoire. These evolutionarily novel miRNAs were primarily expressed in adult neuronal tissues and during the development and had conserved and thus likely functional target sites. The only comparable miRNA expansions happened, notably, in vertebrates. Thus, we propose that miRNAs are intimately linked to the evolution of complex animal brains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Grygoriy Zolotarov
- Laboratory of Systems Biology of Gene Regulatory Elements, Berlin Institute for Medical Systems Biology, Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association, Hannoversche Str 28, 10115 Berlin, Germany
- Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG), Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology (BIST), Barcelona, Spain
- Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Bastian Fromm
- UiT The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
- SciLifeLab, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Ivano Legnini
- Laboratory of Systems Biology of Gene Regulatory Elements, Berlin Institute for Medical Systems Biology, Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association, Hannoversche Str 28, 10115 Berlin, Germany
| | - Salah Ayoub
- Laboratory of Systems Biology of Gene Regulatory Elements, Berlin Institute for Medical Systems Biology, Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association, Hannoversche Str 28, 10115 Berlin, Germany
| | - Gianluca Polese
- Department of Biology, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy
| | - Valeria Maselli
- Department of Biology, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy
| | | | - Jakob Vinther
- School of Earth Sciences, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
| | - Ruth Styfhals
- Laboratory of Developmental Neurobiology, Department of Biology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
- Department of Biology and Evolution of Marine Organisms, Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Naples, Italy
| | - Eve Seuntjens
- Laboratory of Developmental Neurobiology, Department of Biology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Anna Di Cosmo
- Department of Biology, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy
| | | | - Nikolaus Rajewsky
- Laboratory of Systems Biology of Gene Regulatory Elements, Berlin Institute for Medical Systems Biology, Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association, Hannoversche Str 28, 10115 Berlin, Germany
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Sammarco I, Pieters J, Salony S, Toman I, Zolotarov G, Lafon Placette C. Epigenetic targeting of transposon relics: beating the dead horses of the genome? Epigenetics 2022; 17:1331-1344. [PMID: 36255200 PMCID: PMC9586680 DOI: 10.1080/15592294.2021.2022066] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Transposable elements (TEs) have been seen as selfish genetic elements that can propagate in a host genome. Their propagation success is however hindered by a combination of mechanisms such as mutations, selection, and their epigenetic silencing by the host genome. As a result, most copies of TEs in a given genome are dead relics: their sequence is too degenerated to allow any transposition. Nevertheless, these TE relics often, but not always, remain epigenetically silenced, and if not to prevent transposition anymore, one can wonder the reason for this phenomenon. The mere self-perpetuating loop inherent to epigenetic silencing could alone explain that even when inactive, TE copies remain silenced. Beyond this process, nevertheless, antagonistic selective forces are likely to act on TE relic silencing. Especially, without the benefit of preventing transposition, TE relic silencing may prove deleterious to the host fitness, suggesting that the maintenance of TE relic silencing is the result of a fine, and perhaps case-by-case, evolutionary trade-off between beneficial and deleterious effects. Ultimately, the release of TE relics silencing may provide a 'safe' ground for adaptive epimutations to arise. In this review, we provide an overview of these questions in both plants and animals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Iris Sammarco
- Department of Botany, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic,Institute of Botany, Czech Academy of Sciences, Pruhonice, Czech Republic
| | - Janto Pieters
- Laboratory of Pollen Biology, Institute of Experimental Botany, Czech Academy of Science, Prague, Czech Republic,Department of Plant Experimental Biology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Susnata Salony
- Department of Botany, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Izabela Toman
- Department of Anthropology and Human Genetics, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Grygoriy Zolotarov
- Berlin Institute for Medical Systems Biology, Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association, Berlin, Germany
| | - Clément Lafon Placette
- Department of Botany, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic,CONTACT Clément Lafon Placette Department of Botany, Faculty of Science, Charles University, PragueCZ-128 01, Czech Republic
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