Sox2-mediated regulation of adult neural crest precursors and skin repair.
Nerve-derived neural crest cells are essential for regeneration in certain animals, such as newts. Here, we asked whether they play a similar role during mammalian tissue repair, focusing on Sox2-positive neural crest precursors in skin. In adult skin, Sox2 was expressed in nerve-terminal-associated neural crest precursor cells (NCPCs) around the hair follicle bulge, and following injury was induced in nerve-derived cells, likely dedifferentiated Schwann cell precursors. At later times postinjury, Sox2-positive cells were scattered throughout the regenerating dermis, and lineage tracing showed that these were all neural-crest-derived NCPCs. These Sox2-positive NCPCs were functionally important, since acute deletion of Sox2 prior to injury caused a decrease of NCPCs in the wound and aberrant skin repair. These data demonstrate that Sox2 regulates skin repair, likely by controlling NCPCs, and raise the possibility that nerve-derived NCPCs may play a general role in mammalian tissue repair.
Program in Developmental and Stem Cell Biology, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 1L7, Canada.
Adam P W
AP
Johnston
Sibel
S
Naska
Karen
K
Jones
Hiroyuki
H
Jinno
David R
DR
Kaplan
Freda D
FD
Miller
D053687:Adult Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism; D000818:Animals; D002921:Cicatrix; D017353:Gene Deletion; D018859:Hair Follicle / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism; D051379:Mice; D009432:Neural Crest / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism; D058953:Neural Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism; D062326:Re-Epithelialization; D055748:SOXB1 Transcription Factors / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D012583:Schwann Cells / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism; D012867:Skin / Q000166:cytology* / Q000293:injuries / Q000378:metabolism
D055748:SOXB1 Transcription Factors; C527783:Sox2 protein, mouse