Spatiotemporal control of cell cycle acceleration during axolotl spinal cord regeneration

Cura Costa, Emanuel; Otsuki, Leo; Rodrigo Albors, Aida; Tanaka, Elly M; Chara, Osvaldo

Abstract

Axolotls are uniquely able to resolve spinal cord injuries, but little is known about the mechanisms underlying spinal cord regeneration. We previously found that tail amputation leads to reactivation of a developmental-like program in spinal cord ependymal cells (Rodrigo Albors et al., 2015), characterized by a high-proliferation zone emerging 4 days post-amputation (Rost et al., 2016). What underlies this spatiotemporal pattern of cell proliferation, however, remained unknown. Here, we use modeling, tightly linked to experimental data, to demonstrate that this regenerative response is consistent with a signal that recruits ependymal cells during ~85 hours after amputation within ~830 μm of the injury. We adapted Fluorescent Ubiquitination-based Cell Cycle Indicator (FUCCI) technology to axolotls (AxFUCCI) to visualize cell cycles in vivo. AxFUCCI axolotls confirmed the predicted appearance time and size of the injury-induced recruitment zone and revealed cell cycle synchrony between ependymal cells. Our modeling and imaging move us closer to understanding bona fide spinal cord regeneration.

Citation

Cura Costa, E., Otsuki, L., Rodrigo Albors, A., Tanaka, E. M., & Chara, O. (2021). Spatiotemporal control of cell cycle acceleration during axolotl spinal cord regeneration. eLife, 10, Article e55665. https://doi.org/10.7554/elife.55665

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: May 14, 2021
• Online Publication Date: May 14, 2021
• Publication Date: 2021
• Deposit Date: Nov 14, 2024
• Publicly Available Date: Nov 14, 2024
• Journal: eLife
• Electronic ISSN: 2050-084X
• Publisher: eLife Sciences Publications
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 10
• Article Number: e55665
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.7554/elife.55665
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/41903825
• Publisher URL: https://elifesciences.org/articles/55665