Early lineage specification of long-lived germline precursors in the colonial ascidian Botryllus schlosseri.
In many taxa, germline precursors segregate from somatic lineages during embryonic development and are irreversibly committed to gametogenesis. However, in animals that can propagate asexually, germline precursors can originate in adults. Botryllus schlosseri is a colonial ascidian that grows by asexual reproduction, and on a weekly basis regenerates all somatic and germline tissues. Embryonic development in solitary ascidians is the classic example of determinative specification, and we are interested in both the origins and the persistence of stem cells responsible for asexual development in colonial ascidians. In this study, we characterized vasa as a putative marker of germline precursors. We found that maternally deposited vasa mRNA segregates early in development to a posterior lineage of cells, suggesting that germline formation is determinative in colonial ascidians. In adults, vasa expression was observed in the gonads, as well as in a population of mobile cells scattered throughout the open circulatory system, consistent with previous transplantation/reconstitution results. vasa expression was dynamic during asexual development in both fertile and infertile adults, and was also enriched in a population of stem cells. Germline precursors in juveniles could contribute to gamete formation immediately upon transplantation into fertile adults, thus vasa expression is correlated with the potential for gamete formation, which suggests that it is a marker for embryonically specified, long-lived germline progenitors. Transient vasa knockdown did not have obvious effects on germline or somatic development in adult colonies, although it did result in a profound heterochrony, suggesting that vasa might play a homeostatic role in asexual development.
Brown
Federico D
FD
Biology Department, Center for Developmental Biology, and Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA.
Tiozzo
Stefano
S
Roux
Michelle M
MM
Ishizuka
Katherine
K
Swalla
Billie J
BJ
De Tomaso
Anthony W
AW
D000375:Aging; D000818:Animals; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D019070:Cell Lineage; D002470:Cell Survival; D046528:Chimerism; D053487:DEAD-box RNA Helicases / Q000235:genetics; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; D005854:Germ Cells / Q000166:cytology; D006706:Homeostasis; D034741:RNA, Small Interfering; D012098:Reproduction; D013234:Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology; D014561:Urochordata / Q000166:cytology* / Q000196:embryology / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development
D034741:RNA, Small Interfering; D053487:DEAD-box RNA Helicases