scholarly journals cnd-1/NeuroD1 Functions with the Homeobox Gene ceh-5/Vax2 and Hox Gene ceh-13/labial To Specify Aspects of RME and DD Neuron Fate in Caenorhabditis elegans

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 3071-3085
Author(s):  
Wendy Aquino-Nunez ◽  
Zachery E Mielko ◽  
Trae Dunn ◽  
Elise M Santorella ◽  
Ciara Hosea ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Nervous System ◽  
Transcription Factor ◽  
Caenorhabditis Elegans ◽  
Cell Fate ◽  
Neural Development ◽  
Nervous System Development ◽  
Cell Fate Specification ◽  
Hox Gene ◽  
Fate Specification

Abstract Identifying the mechanisms behind neuronal fate specification are key to understanding normal neural development in addition to neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism and schizophrenia. In vivo cell fate specification is difficult to study in vertebrates. However, the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, with its invariant cell lineage and simple nervous system of 302 neurons, is an ideal organism to explore the earliest stages of neural development. We used a comparative transcriptome approach to examine the role of cnd-1/NeuroD1 in C. elegans nervous system development and function. This basic helix-loop-helix transcription factor is deeply conserved across phyla and plays a crucial role in cell fate specification in both the vertebrate nervous system and pancreas. We find that cnd-1 controls expression of ceh-5, a Vax2-like homeobox class transcription factor, in the RME head motorneurons and PVQ tail interneurons. We also show that cnd-1 functions redundantly with the Hox gene ceh-13/labial in defining the fate of DD1 and DD2 embryonic ventral nerve cord motorneurons. These data highlight the utility of comparative transcriptomes for identifying transcription factor targets and understanding gene regulatory networks.

scholarly journals ngn-1/neurogenin Activates Transcription of Multiple Terminal Selector Transcription Factors in the Caenorhabditis elegans Nervous System

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 1949-1962 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elyse L. Christensen ◽  
Alexandra Beasley ◽  
Jessica Radchuk ◽  
Zachery E. Mielko ◽  
Elicia Preston ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Nervous System ◽  
Transcription Factors ◽  
Caenorhabditis Elegans ◽  
Cell Fate ◽  
Neural Development ◽  
System Development ◽  
Neuronal Cell ◽  
Nervous System Development ◽  
Link Type ◽  
Neuroblast Migration

Proper nervous system development is required for an organism’s survival and function. Defects in neurogenesis have been linked to neurodevelopmental disorders such as schizophrenia and autism. Understanding the gene regulatory networks that orchestrate neural development, specifically cascades of proneural transcription factors, can better elucidate which genes are most important during early neurogenesis. Neurogenins are a family of deeply conserved factors shown to be both necessary and sufficient for the development of neural subtypes. However, the immediate downstream targets of neurogenin are not well characterized. The objective of this study was to further elucidate the role of ngn-1/neurogenin in nervous system development and to identify its downstream transcriptional targets, using the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans as a model for this work. We found that ngn-1 is required for axon outgrowth, nerve ring architecture, and neuronal cell fate specification. We also showed that ngn-1 may have roles in neuroblast migration and epithelial integrity during embryonic development. Using RNA sequencing and comparative transcriptome analysis, we identified eight transcription factors (hlh-34/NPAS1, unc-42/PROP1, ceh-17/PHOX2A, lim-4/LHX6, fax-1/NR2E3, lin-11/LHX1, tlp-1/ZNF503, and nhr-23/RORB) whose transcription is activated, either directly or indirectly, by ngn-1. Our results show that ngn-1 has a role in transcribing known terminal regulators that establish and maintain cell fate of differentiated neural subtypes and confirms that ngn-1 functions as a proneural transcription factor in C. elegans neurogenesis.

Caenorhabditis elegans lin-25: A Study of Its Role in Multiple Cell Fate Specification Events Involving Ras and the Identification and Characterization of Evolutionarily Conserved Domains

Genetics ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 156 (3) ◽  
pp. 1083-1096
Author(s):  
Lars Nilsson ◽  
Teresa Tiensuu ◽  
Simon Tuck
Keyword(s):  
Caenorhabditis Elegans ◽  
Cell Fate ◽  
Nuclear Translocation ◽  
Cell Fate Specification ◽  
Sequence Comparisons ◽  
Vulval Development ◽  
Fate Specification ◽  
C Elegans

Abstract Caenorhabditis elegans lin-25 functions downstream of let-60 ras in the genetic pathway for the induction of the 1° cell fate during vulval development and encodes a novel 130-kD protein. The biochemical activity of LIN-25 is presently unknown, but the protein appears to function together with SUR-2, whose human homologue binds to Mediator, a protein complex required for transcriptional regulation. We describe here experiments that indicate that, besides its role in vulval development, lin-25 also participates in the fate specification of a number of other cells in the worm that are known to require Ras-mediated signaling. We also describe the cloning of a lin-25 orthologue from C. briggsae. Sequence comparisons suggest that the gene is evolving relatively rapidly. By characterizing the molecular lesions associated with 10 lin-25 mutant alleles and by assaying in vivo the activity of mutants lin-25 generated in vitro, we have identified three domains within LIN-25 that are required for activity or stability. We have also identified a sequence that is required for efficient nuclear translocation. We discuss how lin-25 might act in cell fate specification in C. elegans within the context of models for lin-25 function in cell identity and cell signaling.

scholarly journals Developmental clock and mechanism of de novo polarization of the mouse embryo

Science ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 370 (6522) ◽  
pp. eabd2703
Author(s):  
Meng Zhu ◽  
Jake Cornwall-Scoones ◽  
Peizhe Wang ◽  
Charlotte E. Handford ◽  
Jie Na ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Transcription Factor ◽  
Cell Fate ◽  
De Novo ◽  
Cell Fate Specification ◽  
Mouse Development ◽  
Fate Specification ◽  
Apical Domain ◽  
Transcription Factor 4 ◽  
Genome Activation ◽  
Zygotic Genome

Embryo polarization is critical for mouse development; however, neither the regulatory clock nor the molecular trigger that it activates is known. Here, we show that the embryo polarization clock reflects the onset of zygotic genome activation, and we identify three factors required to trigger polarization. Advancing the timing of transcription factor AP-2 gamma (Tfap2c) and TEA domain transcription factor 4 (Tead4) expression in the presence of activated Ras homolog family member A (RhoA) induces precocious polarization as well as subsequent cell fate specification and morphogenesis. Tfap2c and Tead4 induce expression of actin regulators that control the recruitment of apical proteins on the membrane, whereas RhoA regulates their lateral mobility, allowing the emergence of the apical domain. Thus, Tfap2c, Tead4, and RhoA are regulators for the onset of polarization and cell fate segregation in the mouse.

Stem Cell Fate Specification: Role of Master Regulatory Switch Transcription Factor PU.1 in Differential Hematopoiesis

2005 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 140-152 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gurudutta U. Gangenahalli ◽  
Pallavi Gupta ◽  
Daman Saluja ◽  
Yogesh K. Verma ◽  
Vimal Kishore ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Transcription Factor ◽  
Stem Cell ◽  
Cell Fate ◽  
Cell Fate Specification ◽  
Stem Cell Fate ◽  
Fate Specification

scholarly journals Transcriptional upregulation of the C. elegans Hox gene lin-39 during vulval cell fate specification

2006 ◽  
Vol 123 (2) ◽  
pp. 135-150 ◽  
Author(s):  
Javier A. Wagmaister ◽  
Julie E. Gleason ◽  
David M. Eisenmann
Keyword(s):  
Cell Fate ◽  
Cell Fate Specification ◽  
Hox Gene ◽  
Fate Specification ◽  
C Elegans

scholarly journals Polarized epidermal growth factor secretion ensures robust vulval cell fate specification in Caenorhabditis elegans

Development ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 147 (11) ◽  
pp. dev175760
Author(s):  
Louisa Mereu ◽  
Matthias K. Morf ◽  
Silvan Spiri ◽  
Peter Gutierrez ◽  
Juan M. Escobar-Restrepo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Caenorhabditis Elegans ◽  
Growth Factor ◽  
Epidermal Growth Factor ◽  
Cell Fate ◽  
Cell Fate Specification ◽  
Fate Specification ◽  
Epidermal Growth ◽  
Factor Secretion ◽  
Growth Factor Secretion

scholarly journals Drosophila Embryonic CNS Development: Neurogenesis, Gliogenesis, Cell Fate, and Differentiation

Genetics ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 213 (4) ◽  
pp. 1111-1144 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen T. Crews
Keyword(s):  
Nervous System ◽  
Cell Fate ◽  
Molecular Genetic ◽  
Cell Fate Specification ◽  
Cns Development ◽  
Fate Specification ◽  
The Past ◽  
New Concepts ◽  
Embryonic Cns ◽  
Complex Organ

The Drosophila embryonic central nervous system (CNS) is a complex organ consisting of ∼15,000 neurons and glia that is generated in ∼1 day of development. For the past 40 years, Drosophila developmental neuroscientists have described each step of CNS development in precise molecular genetic detail. This has led to an understanding of how an intricate nervous system emerges from a single cell. These studies have also provided important, new concepts in developmental biology, and provided an essential model for understanding similar processes in other organisms. In this article, the key genes that guide Drosophila CNS development and how they function is reviewed. Features of CNS development covered in this review are neurogenesis, gliogenesis, cell fate specification, and differentiation.

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