Canonical Wnt signaling and the regulation of divergent mesenchymal Fgf8 expression in axolotl limb development and regeneration

Elife. 2022 May 31:11:e79762. doi: 10.7554/eLife.79762.

Abstract

The expression of fibroblast growth factors (Fgf) ligands in a specialized epithelial compartment, the Apical Ectodermal Ridge (AER), is a conserved feature of limb development across vertebrate species. In vertebrates, Fgf 4, 8, 9, and 17 are all expressed in the AER. An exception to this paradigm is the salamander (axolotl) developing and regenerating limb, where key Fgf ligands are expressed in the mesenchyme. The mesenchymal expression of Amex.Fgf8 in axolotl has been suggested to be critical for regeneration. To date, there is little knowledge regarding what controls Amex.Fgf8 expression in the axolotl limb mesenchyme. A large body of mouse and chick studies have defined a set of transcription factors and canonical Wnt signaling as the main regulators of epidermal Fgf8 expression in these organisms. In this study, we address the hypothesis that alterations to one or more of these components during evolution has resulted in mesenchymal Amex.Fgf8 expression in the axolotl. To sensitively quantify gene expression with spatial precision, we combined optical clearing of whole-mount axolotl limb tissue with single molecule fluorescent in situ hybridization and a semiautomated quantification pipeline. Several candidate upstream components were found expressed in the axolotl ectoderm, indicating that they are not direct regulators of Amex.Fgf8 expression. We found that Amex.Wnt3a is expressed in axolotl limb epidermis, similar to chicken and mouse. However, unlike in amniotes, Wnt target genes are activated preferentially in limb mesenchyme rather than in epidermis. Inhibition and activation of Wnt signaling results in downregulation and upregulation of mesenchymal Amex.Fgf8 expression, respectively. These results implicate a shift in tissue responsiveness to canonical Wnt signaling from epidermis to mesenchyme as one step contributing to the unique mesenchymal Amex.Fgf8 expression seen in the axolotl.

Keywords: Fgf8; HCR; Wnt; axolotl; developmental biology; limb regeneration; regenerative medicine; stem cells.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Ambystoma mexicanum* / genetics
  • Animals
  • Chickens / genetics
  • Extremities / physiology
  • Fibroblast Growth Factor 8 / genetics
  • Fibroblast Growth Factor 8 / metabolism
  • Fibroblast Growth Factors / metabolism
  • Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental
  • In Situ Hybridization, Fluorescence
  • Ligands
  • Vertebrates / genetics
  • Wnt Signaling Pathway*

Substances

  • Ligands
  • Fibroblast Growth Factor 8
  • Fibroblast Growth Factors

Associated data

  • GEO/GSE165901
  • SRA/SRX7140465

Grants and funding

The funders had no role in study design, data collection, and interpretation, or the decision to submit the work for publication.