Open AccessA single-cell transcriptional roadmap for cardiopharyngeal fate diversification
Author(s) -
Wei Wang,
Xiang Niu,
Tim Stuart,
Estelle Jullian,
William M. Mauck,
Robert G. Kelly,
Rahul Satija,
Lionel Christiaen
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
nature cell biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 11.38
H-Index - 369
eISSN - 1476-4679
pISSN - 1465-7392
DOI - 10.1038/s41556-019-0336-z
Subject(s) - cell fate determination , microbiology and biotechnology , diversification (marketing strategy) , cell , biology , computational biology , transcription factor , genetics , business , gene , marketing
In vertebrates, multipotent progenitors located in the pharyngeal mesoderm form cardiomyocytes and branchiomeric head muscles, but the dynamic gene expression programmes and mechanisms underlying cardiopharyngeal multipotency and heart versus head muscle fate choices remain elusive. Here, we used single-cell genomics in the simple chordate model Ciona to reconstruct developmental trajectories forming first and second heart lineages and pharyngeal muscle precursors and characterize the molecular underpinnings of cardiopharyngeal fate choices. We show that FGF-MAPK signalling maintains multipotency and promotes the pharyngeal muscle fate, whereas signal termination permits the deployment of a pan-cardiac programme, shared by the first and second heart lineages, to define heart identity. In the second heart lineage, a Tbx1/10-Dach pathway actively suppresses the first heart lineage programme, conditioning later cell diversity in the beating heart. Finally, cross-species comparisons between Ciona and the mouse evoke the deep evolutionary origins of cardiopharyngeal networks in chordates.