Identification of epidermal progenitors for the Merkel cell lineage

Epithelial stem cells in adult mammalian skin are known to maintain epidermal, follicular and sebaceous lineages during homeostasis. Recently, Merkel cell mechanoreceptors were identified as a fourth lineage derived from the proliferative layer of murine skin epithelium; however, the location of the stem or progenitor population for Merkel cells remains unknown. Here, we have identified a previously undescribed population of epidermal progenitors that reside in the touch domes of hairy skin, termed touch dome progenitor cells (TDPCs). TDPCs are epithelial keratinocytes and are distinguished by their unique co-expression of α6 integrin, Sca1 and CD200 surface proteins. TDPCs exhibit bipotent progenitor behavior as they give rise to both squamous and neuroendocrine epidermal lineages, whereas the remainder of the α6(+) Sca1(+) CD200(-) epidermis does not give rise to Merkel cells. Finally, TDPCs possess a unique transcript profile that appears to be enforced by the juxtaposition of TDPCs with Merkel cells within the touch dome niche.