scholarly journals Bayesian inference of transcriptional branching identifies regulators of early germ cell development in humans

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher A. Penfold ◽  
Anastasiya Sybirna ◽  
John Reid ◽  
Aracely Castillo Venzor ◽  
Elena Drousioti ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cell Fate ◽  
Germ Cells ◽  
Temporal Dynamics ◽  
Primordial Germ Cells ◽  
Series Data ◽  
Human Embryos ◽  
Marker Genes ◽  
Cell Fate Decisions ◽  
Stage Of Development

AbstractDuring embryonic development, cells undertake a series of fate decisions to form a complete organism comprised of various cell types, epitomising a branching process. A striking example of branching occurs in humans around the time of implantation, when primordial germ cells (PGCs), precursors of sperm and eggs, and somatic lineages are specified. Due to inaccessibility of human embryos at this stage of development, understanding the mechanisms of PGC specification remains difficult. The integrative modelling of single cell transcriptomics data from embryos and appropriate in vitro models should prove to be a useful resource for investigating this system, provided that the cells can be suitably ordered over a developmental axis. Unfortunately, most methods for inferring cell ordering were not designed with structured (time series) data in mind. Although some probabilistic approaches address these limitations by incorporating prior information about the developmental stage (capture time) of the cell, they do not allow the ordering of cells over processes with more than one terminal cell fate. To investigate the mechanisms of PGC specification, we develop a probabilistic pseudotime approach, branch-recombinant Gaussian process latent variable models (B-RGPLVMs), that use an explicit model of transcriptional branching in individual marker genes, allowing the ordering of cells over developmental trajectories with arbitrary numbers of branches. We use first demonstrate the advantage of our approach over existing pseudotime algorithms and subsequently use it to investigate early human development, as primordial germ cells (PGCs) and somatic cells diverge. We identify known master regulators of human PGCs, and predict roles for a variety of signalling pathways, transcription factors, and epigenetic modifiers. By concentrating on the earliest branched signalling events, we identified an antagonistic role for FGF receptor (FGFR) signalling pathway in the acquisition of competence for human PGC fate, and identify putative roles for PRC1 and PRC2 in PGC specification. We experimentally validate our predictions using pharmacological blocking of FGFR or its downstream effectors (MEK, PI3K and JAK), and demonstrate enhanced competency for PGC fate in vitro, whilst small molecule inhibition of the enzymatic component of PRC1/PRC2 reveals reduced capacity of cells to form PGCs in vitro. Thus, B-RGPLVMs represent a powerful and flexible data-driven approach for dissecting the temporal dynamics of cell fate decisions, providing unique insights into the mechanisms of early embryogenesis. Scripts relating to this analysis are available from: https://github.com/cap76/PGCPseudotime

scholarly journals Quantitative analysis of signaling responses during mouse primordial germ cell specification

Biology Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sophie M. Morgani ◽  
Anna-Katerina Hadjantonakis
Keyword(s):  
Cell Fate ◽  
Primordial Germ Cells ◽  
Primordial Germ Cell ◽  
Small Population ◽  
Bmp Signaling ◽  
Pluripotent Cells ◽  
Cell Fate Decisions ◽  
Germ Cell Specification

ABSTRACT During early mammalian development, the pluripotent cells of the embryo are exposed to a combination of signals that drive exit from pluripotency and germ layer differentiation. At the same time, a small population of pluripotent cells give rise to the primordial germ cells (PGCs), the precursors of the sperm and egg, which pass on heritable genetic information to the next generation. Despite the importance of PGCs, it remains unclear how they are first segregated from the soma, and if this involves distinct responses to their signaling environment. To investigate this question, we mapped BMP, MAPK and WNT signaling responses over time in PGCs and their surrounding niche in vitro and in vivo at single-cell resolution. We showed that, in the mouse embryo, early PGCs exhibit lower BMP and MAPK responses compared to neighboring extraembryonic mesoderm cells, suggesting the emergence of distinct signaling regulatory mechanisms in the germline versus soma. In contrast, PGCs and somatic cells responded comparably to WNT, indicating that this signal alone is not sufficient to promote somatic differentiation. Finally, we investigated the requirement of a BMP response for these cell fate decisions. We found that cell lines with a mutation in the BMP receptor (Bmpr1a−/−), which exhibit an impaired BMP signaling response, can efficiently generate PGC-like cells revealing that canonical BMP signaling is not cell autonomously required to direct PGC-like differentiation.

scholarly journals Quantitative analysis of signaling responses during mouse primordial germ cell specification

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sophie M. Morgani ◽  
Anna-Katerina Hadjantonakis
Keyword(s):  
Cell Fate ◽  
Primordial Germ Cells ◽  
Primordial Germ Cell ◽  
Small Population ◽  
Bmp Signaling ◽  
Pluripotent Cells ◽  
Cell Fate Decisions ◽  
Germ Cell Specification

AbstractDuring early mammalian development, the pluripotent cells of the embryo are exposed to a combination of signals that drive exit from pluripotency and germ layer differentiation. At the same time, a small population of pluripotent cells give rise to the primordial germ cells (PGCs), the precursors of the sperm and egg, which pass on heritable genetic information to the next generation. Despite the importance of PGCs, it remains unclear how they are first segregated from the soma, and if this involves distinct responses to their signaling environment. To investigate this question, we mapped BMP, MAPK and WNT signaling responses over time in PGCs and their surrounding niche in vitro and in vivo at single-cell resolution. We showed that, in the mouse embryo, early PGCs exhibit lower BMP and MAPK responses compared to neighboring extraembryonic mesoderm cells, suggesting the emergence of distinct signaling regulatory mechanisms in the germline versus soma. In contrast, PGCs and somatic cells responded comparably to WNT, indicating that this signal alone is not sufficient to promote somatic differentiation. Finally, we investigated the requirement of a BMP response for these cell fate decisions. We found that cell lines with a mutation in the BMP receptor (Bmpr1a−/−), which exhibit an impaired BMP signaling response, can efficiently generate PGC-like cells revealing that canonical BMP signaling is not cell autonomously required to direct PGC-like differentiation.

scholarly journals Protein expression reveals a molecular sexual identity of avian primordial germ cells at pre-gonadal stages

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Soler ◽  
Sabine Alves ◽  
Aurélien Brionne ◽  
Aurore Jacques ◽  
Vanessa Guérin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Resources ◽  
Sexual Identity ◽  
Cell Fate ◽  
Germ Cells ◽  
Sex Chromosome ◽  
Sex Differentiation ◽  
Primordial Germ Cells ◽  
Specific Cell ◽  
Male And Female

AbstractIn poultry, in vitro propagated primordial germ cells (PGCs) represent an important tool for the cryopreservation of avian genetic resources. However, several studies have highlighted sexual differences exhibited by PGCs during in vitro propagation, which may compromise their reproductive capacities. To understand this phenomenon, we compared the proteome of pregonadal migratory male (ZZ) and female (ZW) chicken PGCs propagated in vitro by quantitative proteomic analysis using a GeLC-MS/MS strategy. Many proteins were found to be differentially abundant in chicken male and female PGCs indicating their early sexual identity. Many of the proteins more highly expressed in male PGCs were encoded by genes localised to the Z sex chromosome. This suggests that the known lack of dosage compensation of the transcription of Z-linked genes between sexes persists at the protein level in PGCs, and that this may be a key factor of their autonomous sex differentiation. We also found that globally, protein differences do not closely correlate with transcript differences indicating a selective translational mechanism in PGCs. Male and female PGC expressed protein sets were associated with differential biological processes and contained proteins known to be biologically relevant for male and female germ cell development, respectively. We also discovered that female PGCs have a higher capacity to uptake proteins from the cell culture medium than male PGCs. This study presents the first evidence of an early predetermined sex specific cell fate of chicken PGCs and their sexual molecular specificities which will enable the development of more precise sex-specific in vitro culture conditions for the preservation of avian genetic resources.

scholarly journals Study on the Function and Mechanism of Lin28B in the Formation of Chicken Primordial Germ Cells

Animals ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 43
Author(s):  
Qisheng Zuo ◽  
Jing Zhou ◽  
Man Wang ◽  
Yani Zhang ◽  
Guohong Chen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Germ Cells ◽  
High Throughput Sequencing ◽  
Rna Binding ◽  
Rna Binding Proteins ◽  
Periodic Acid ◽  
Primordial Germ Cells ◽  
Negative Regulator ◽  
Marker Genes ◽  
Periodic Acid Schiff

Lin28A and Lin28B are two homologues of the same family of RNA binding proteins (RBPs). The function and molecular mechanism of Lin28A in the formation of primordial germ cells (PGCs) are very clear, but the related research on Lin28B is rarely reported. Here, we found that the overexpression of Lin28B can promote the formation of PGC in vivo. Furthermore, the overexpression of Lin28B also resulted in the inhibition of totipotency gene expression and upregulated the PGCs marker genes, and a significant increase in the number of PGCs in genital ridge, as detected by Periodic Acid-Schiff(PAS) staining. However, the inhibited Lin28B expression showed completely opposite results, which were confirmed on the PGC induction model in vitro. Mechanistically, we found that the overexpression of Lin28B can inhibit the maturation of let-7a-3p, and the results of high-throughput sequencing indicated that let-7a-3p was a negative regulator of the formation process of PGCs. Therefore, we conclude that our results determine that Lin28B participates in the formation of PGCs through let-7a-3p, which set a theoretical foundation for improving the function and mechanism of Lin28 family in the formation of PGCs.

scholarly journals Formative pluripotent stem cells show features of epiblast cells poised for gastrulation

Cell Research ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaoxiao Wang ◽  
Yunlong Xiang ◽  
Yang Yu ◽  
Ran Wang ◽  
Yu Zhang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Stem Cells ◽  
Germ Cells ◽  
Pluripotent Stem Cells ◽  
Primordial Germ Cells ◽  
Embryonic Stem ◽  
Large Set ◽  
Mouse Escs ◽  
Epiblast Stem Cells ◽  
Early Gastrula

AbstractThe pluripotency of mammalian early and late epiblast could be recapitulated by naïve embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and primed epiblast stem cells (EpiSCs), respectively. However, these two states of pluripotency may not be sufficient to reflect the full complexity and developmental potency of the epiblast during mammalian early development. Here we report the establishment of self-renewing formative pluripotent stem cells (fPSCs) which manifest features of epiblast cells poised for gastrulation. fPSCs can be established from different mouse ESCs, pre-/early-gastrula epiblasts and induced PSCs. Similar to pre-/early-gastrula epiblasts, fPSCs show the transcriptomic features of formative pluripotency, which are distinct from naïve ESCs and primed EpiSCs. fPSCs show the unique epigenetic states of E6.5 epiblast, including the super-bivalency of a large set of developmental genes. Just like epiblast cells immediately before gastrulation, fPSCs can efficiently differentiate into three germ layers and primordial germ cells (PGCs) in vitro. Thus, fPSCs highlight the feasibility of using PSCs to explore the development of mammalian epiblast.

Effects of apoptosis inhibitors on survival of porcine primordial germ cells in vitro

1999 ◽  
Vol 51 (1) ◽  
pp. 208 ◽  
Author(s):  
C-K Lee ◽  
R Weaks ◽  
J.A Piedrahita
Keyword(s):  
Germ Cells ◽  
Primordial Germ Cells

scholarly journals Truncated mammalian Notch1 activates CBF1/RBPJk-repressed genes by a mechanism resembling that of Epstein-Barr virus EBNA2.

1996 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 952-959 ◽  
Author(s):  
J J Hsieh ◽  
T Henkel ◽  
P Salmon ◽  
E Robey ◽  
M G Peterson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acid ◽  
Cell Fate ◽  
Transcriptional Repression ◽  
Epstein Barr Virus ◽  
Cell Fate Decisions ◽  
Barr Virus ◽  
Amino Acid Region ◽  
Nuclear Events ◽  
Epstein Barr

The Notch/Lin-12/Glp-1 receptor family participates in cell-cell signaling events that influence cell fate decisions. Although several Notch homologs and receptor ligands have been identified, the nuclear events involved in this pathway remain incompletely understood. A truncated form of Notch, consisting only of the intracellular domain (NotchIC), localizes to the nucleus and functions as an activated receptor. Using both an in vitro binding assay and a cotransfection assay based on the two-hybrid principle, we show that mammalian NotchIC interacts with the transcriptional repressor CBF1, which is the human homolog of Drosophila Suppressor of Hairless. Cotransfection assays using segments of mouse NotchIC and CBF1 demonstrated that the N-terminal 114-amino-acid region of mouse NotchIC contains the CBF1 interactive domain and that the cdc10/ankyrin repeats are not essential for this interaction. This result was confirmed in immunoprecipation assays in which the N-terminal 114-amino-acid segment of NotchIC, but not the ankyrin repeat region, coprecipitated with CBF1. Mouse NotchIC itself is targeted to the transcriptional repression domain (aa179 to 361) of CBF1. Furthermore, transfection assays in which mouse NotchIC was targeted through Gal4-CBF1 or through endogenous cellular CBF1 indicated that NotchIC transactivates gene expression via CBF1 tethering to DNA. Transactivation by NotchIC occurs partially through abolition of CBF1-mediated repession. This same mechanism is used by Epstein-Barr virus EBNA2. Thus, mimicry of Notch signal transduction is involved in Epstein-Barr virus-driven immortalization.

scholarly journals Differentiation of Mouse Primordial Germ Cells into Functional Oocytes In Vitro

2017 ◽  
Vol 45 (7) ◽  
pp. 1608-1619 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kanako Morohaku ◽  
Yuji Hirao ◽  
Yayoi Obata
Keyword(s):  
Germ Cells ◽  
Primordial Germ Cells
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