Shortened primary cilia in palatal mesenchyme of Specc1l ∆CCD2/∆CCD2 mouse model of cleft palate

Orofacial clefts are among the most common congenital malformations, affecting approximately 1 in 700 births. Mutations in SPECC1L have been identified in patients with syndromic and nonsyndromic cleft lip and/or palate. Syndromic SPECC1Lmutations cluster in the second coiled coil domain (CCD2), which facilitates interaction of this cytoskeletal protein with microtubules. Our recent studies indicate that mice with an in‐frame deletion of SPECC1L‐CCD2 exhibit cleft palate and exencephaly in a dominant‐negative manner. Notably, orofacial clefts and exencephaly are common manifestations of ciliopathies – human disorders which arise from disruption of cilia – but an association between SPECC1L and cilia has not been reported. We investigated cilia in E13.5 Specc1l ∆CCD2/∆CCD2 mutant palatal shelves. SPECC1L localizes to the cytoplasm and around the cilia base in wild‐type palatal mesenchyme, but this localization is diminished in Specc1l ∆CCD2/∆CCD2 palatal mesenchyme. In addition, primary cilia lengths are decreased in Specc1l ∆CCD2/∆CCD2 palatal mesenchyme and epithelium relative to wild‐type, on both the lingual and buccal sides of the palate. We hypothesize that an intracellular trafficking defect in the palatal mesenchyme results in shortened cilia and that the shortened cilia affects signaling in the palatal mesenchyme. Since the IFT‐A mouse mutant, Thm1 aln/aln , shares overlapping phenotypes with Specc1l mutant mice, including cleft palate, exencephaly, and shortened cilia, we crossed the two mutants to look for a genetic interaction. Indeed, ~30% of double heterozygous Specc1l ∆CCD2/+ ; Thm1 aln/+ mice show cleft palate. Interestingly, none of the double heterozygous mice showed exencephaly, indicating a palate specificity of the genetic interaction. Previous studies have shown that conditional loss of Thm1 in neural crest cells (NCCs), which give rise to the palatal mesenchyme, results in cleft palate, and that Specc1l deficiency leads to NCC delamination defect. Our recent analysis of Specc1l deficient embryos demonstrates that cilia are shorter in mutant NCC even compared with surrounding non‐NCCs. While SPECC1L is broadly expressed during early craniofacial development, its expression is stronger in migrating NCCs. Thus, we propose that the genetic interaction between Specc1l and Thm1 initiates in the NCC. Overall, our studies indicate a novel role for SPECC1L in ciliogenesis and NCC function.