PGC-derived migrasomes couple PGC proliferation with migration

Boqi Liu; Zheng Jiang; Wenhao Song; Zhaocheng Zhai; Yaqi Li; Weiying Zhang; Anming Meng; Li Yu

doi:10.1038/s41467-026-71616-4

PGC-derived migrasomes couple PGC proliferation with migration

Nat Commun. 2026 Apr 10. doi: 10.1038/s41467-026-71616-4. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Boqi Liu^{1

2

3}, Zheng Jiang^{1

2

4}, Wenhao Song^{1

2

3

5}, Zhaocheng Zhai^{1

2

3

6}, Yaqi Li^{1

2

4

7}, Weiying Zhang^{1

2

4}, Anming Meng^{8

9

10

11}, Li Yu^{12

13

14}

Affiliations

¹ State Key Laboratory of Membrane Biology, School of Life Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China.
² Tsinghua-Peking Center for Life Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China.
³ Beijing Frontier Research Center for Biological Structure, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China.
⁴ Laboratory of Molecular Developmental Biology, School of Life Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China.
⁵ Stowers Institute for Medical Research, Kansas City, MO, USA.
⁶ Cologne Excellence Cluster for Aging and Aging-Associated Diseases, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany.
⁷ Department of Histology and Embryology, Naval Medical University, Shanghai, China.
⁸ State Key Laboratory of Membrane Biology, School of Life Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China. mengam@mail.tsinghua.edu.cn.
⁹ Tsinghua-Peking Center for Life Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China. mengam@mail.tsinghua.edu.cn.
¹⁰ Laboratory of Molecular Developmental Biology, School of Life Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China. mengam@mail.tsinghua.edu.cn.
¹¹ Laboratory of Stem Cell Regulation, Guangzhou Laboratory, Guangzhou, China. mengam@mail.tsinghua.edu.cn.
¹² State Key Laboratory of Membrane Biology, School of Life Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China. liyulab@mail.tsinghua.edu.cn.
¹³ Tsinghua-Peking Center for Life Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China. liyulab@mail.tsinghua.edu.cn.
¹⁴ Beijing Frontier Research Center for Biological Structure, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China. liyulab@mail.tsinghua.edu.cn.

PMID: 41957360
DOI: 10.1038/s41467-026-71616-4

Abstract

The coordination of cell migration and proliferation is essential for embryogenesis and tissue homeostasis. However, the classical gradient signaling model is insufficient to explain how stable mitogenic signaling is maintained within migratory cells. Here, we reveal that primordial germ cells (PGCs) in zebrafish employ migrasomes-vesicular organelles formed during migration-to couple their proliferation with migration, ensuring germline expansion. Migrasomes, generated at retraction fibers via tspan7-dependent biogenesis, deliver the growth factor GDF3 specifically to neighboring PGCs through contact-dependent interactions. GDF3 activates the TGF-β receptor acvr1ba, driving proliferation in a spatiotemporally restricted manner. This homocrine signaling mechanism allows migrating PGCs to autonomously sustain proliferation, circumventing signal dilution in embryonic environments. This work uncovers migrasomes as a bridge linking migration and proliferation, with implications for understanding collective cell behaviors in development and disease.

Abstract

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