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A nonneural epithelial domain of embryonic cranial neural folds gives rise to ectomesenchyme.

ABSTRACT: The neural crest is generally believed to be the embryonic source of skeletogenic mesenchyme (ectomesenchyme) in the vertebrate head and other derivatives, including pigment cells and neurons and glia of the peripheral nervous system. Although classical transplantation experiments leading to this conclusion assumed that embryonic neural folds were homogeneous epithelia, we reported that embryonic cranial neural folds contain spatially and phenotypically distinct domains, including a lateral nonneural domain with cells that coexpress E-cadherin and PDGFRalpha and a thickened mediodorsal neuroepithelial domain where these proteins are reduced or absent. We now show that Wnt1-Cre is expressed in the lateral nonneural epithelium of rostral neural folds and that cells coexpressing Cre-recombinase and PDGFRalpha delaminate precociously from some of this nonneural epithelium. We also show that ectomesenchymal cells exhibit beta-galactosidase activity in embryos heterozygous for an Ecad-lacZ reporter knock- in allele. We conclude that a lateral nonneural domain of the neural fold epithelium, which we call "metablast," is a source of ectomesenchyme distinct from the neural crest. We suggest that closer analysis of the origin of ectomesenchyme might help to understand (i) the molecular-genetic regulation of development of both neural crest and ectomesenchyme lineages; (ii) the early developmental origin of skeletogenic and connective tissue mesenchyme in the vertebrate head; and (iii) the presumed origin of head and branchial arch skeletal and connective tissue structures during vertebrate evolution.

SUBMITTER: Breau MA

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2408482 | biostudies-literature |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Project description:Severe liver diseases are characterized by expansion of liver progenitor cells (LPC), which correlates with disease severity. However, the origin and role of LPC in liver physiology and in hepatic injury remains a contentious topic. We found that ductular reaction cells in human cirrhotic livers express hepatocyte nuclear factor 1 homeobox B (HNF1?). However, HNF1? expression was not present in newly generated epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM)-positive hepatocytes. In order to investigate the role of HNF1?-expressing cells we used a tamoxifen-inducible Hnf1?CreER/R26R(Yfp/LacZ) mouse to lineage-trace Hnf1?(+) biliary duct cells and to assess their contribution to LPC expansion and hepatocyte generation. Lineage tracing demonstrated no contribution of HNF1?(+) cells to hepatocytes during liver homeostasis in healthy mice or after loss of liver mass. After acute acetaminophen or carbon tetrachloride injury no contribution of HNF1?(+) cells to hepatocyte was detected. We next assessed the contribution of Hnf1?(+) -derived cells following two liver injury models with LPC expansion, a diethoxycarbonyl-1,4-dihydro-collidin (DDC)-diet and a choline-deficient ethionine-supplemented (CDE)-diet. The contribution of Hnf1?(+) cells to liver regeneration was dependent on the liver injury model. While no contribution was observed after DDC-diet treatment, mice fed with a CDE-diet showed a small population of hepatocytes derived from Hnf1?(+) cells that were expanded to 1.86% of total hepatocytes after injury recovery. Genome-wide expression profile of Hnf1?(+) -derived cells from the DDC and CDE models indicated that no contribution of LPC to hepatocytes was associated with LPC expression of genes related to telomere maintenance, inflammation, and chemokine signaling pathways.HNF1?(+) biliary duct cells are the origin of LPC. HNF1?(+) cells do not contribute to hepatocyte turnover in the healthy liver, but after certain liver injury, they can differentiate to hepatocytes contributing to liver regeneration.

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A nonneural epithelial domain of embryonic cranial neural folds gives rise to ectomesenchyme.

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