Pax3:Foxc2 reciprocal repression in the somite modulates muscular versus vascular cell fate choice in multipotent progenitors.
Maintenance of multipotency and how cells exit this state to adopt a specific fate are central questions in stem cell biology. During vertebrate development, multipotent cells of the dorsal somite, the dermomyotome, give rise to different lineages such as vascular smooth and skeletal muscle, regulated by the transcription factors Foxc2 and Pax3, respectively. Here we show reciprocal inhibition between Pax3 and Foxc2 in the mouse embryo. Using both genetic approaches and manipulation of external signals in somite explants, we demonstrate that the Pax3:Foxc2 ratio modulates myogenic versus vascular cell fates. This provides insight into how cell fate choices are orchestrated by these lineage genes in the dermomyotome.
Lagha
Mounia
M
CNRS URA 2578, Département de Biologie du Développement, Institut Pasteur, 75015 Paris, France.
Brunelli
Silvia
S
Messina
Graziella
G
Cumano
Ana
A
Kume
Tsutomu
T
Relaix
Frédéric
F
Buckingham
Margaret E
ME
D000818:Animals; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D004622:Embryo, Mammalian / Q000166:cytology*; D051858:Forkhead Transcription Factors / Q000378:metabolism*; D051379:Mice; D039902:Multipotent Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology*; D018482:Muscle, Skeletal / Q000166:cytology / Q000196:embryology*; D009131:Muscle, Smooth, Vascular / Q000166:cytology / Q000196:embryology*; D000072041:PAX3 Transcription Factor; D051763:PAX7 Transcription Factor / Q000378:metabolism; D051761:Paired Box Transcription Factors / Q000378:metabolism*; D019170:Somites / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism
D051858:Forkhead Transcription Factors; D000072041:PAX3 Transcription Factor; D051763:PAX7 Transcription Factor; D051761:Paired Box Transcription Factors; C497322:Pax7 protein, mouse; C082078:mesenchyme fork head 1 protein; C068686:Pax3 protein, mouse