Toddler signaling regulates mesodermal cell migration downstream of Nodal signaling.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 29117894.
- Also identified by DOI 10.7554/eLife.22626 and PMC identifier 5679751.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
Toddler/Apela/Elabela is a conserved secreted peptide that regulates mesendoderm development during zebrafish gastrulation. Two non-exclusive models have been proposed to explain Toddler function. The 'specification model' postulates that Toddler signaling enhances Nodal signaling to properly specify endoderm, whereas the 'migration model' posits that Toddler signaling regulates mesendodermal cell migration downstream of Nodal signaling. Here, we test key predictions of both models. We find that in <i>toddler</i> mutants Nodal signaling is initially normal and increasing endoderm specification does not rescue mesendodermal cell migration. Mesodermal cell migration defects in <i>toddler</i> mutants result from a decrease in animal pole-directed migration and are independent of endoderm. Conversely, endodermal cell migration defects are dependent on a Cxcr4a-regulated tether of the endoderm to mesoderm. These results suggest that Toddler signaling regulates mesodermal cell migration downstream of Nodal signaling and indirectly affects endodermal cell migration via Cxcr4a-signaling.
Medical subject headings
- Cell Movement
- Mesoderm
- Nodal Signaling Ligands
- Receptors, CXCR4
- Signal Transduction
- Zebrafish Proteins