TGF-β mediated FGF10 signaling in cranial neural crest cells controls development of myogenic progenitor cells through tissue–tissue interactions during tongue morphogenesis

• Published in: Developmental biology Vol. 341; no. 1; pp. 186 - 195
• Main Authors: Hosokawa, Ryoichi, Oka, Kyoko, Yamaza, Takayoshi, Iwata, Junichi, Urata, Mark, Xu, Xun, Bringas, Pablo, Nonaka, Kazuaki, Chai, Yang
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Elsevier Inc 01.05.2010
• Subjects: Animals; Cell proliferation; Cranial neural crest cell; Differentiation; FGF10; Fibroblast Growth Factor 10 - metabolism; Mice; Mice, Transgenic; Morphogenesis; Mouse; Neural Crest - metabolism; Occipital somite; Protein-Serine-Threonine Kinases - genetics; Protein-Serine-Threonine Kinases - metabolism; Receptor, Transforming Growth Factor-beta Type II; Receptors, Transforming Growth Factor beta - genetics; Receptors, Transforming Growth Factor beta - metabolism; Scleraxis; Signal Transduction; TGF-β; Tongue - cytology; Tongue - embryology; Tongue development; Transforming Growth Factor beta - metabolism; Cell proliferation; Occipital somite; Mouse; Tongue development; Cranial neural crest cell; TGF-β; Scleraxis; Differentiation; FGF10
• ISSN: 0012-1606; 1095-564X
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2010.02.030

Skeletal muscles are formed from two cell lineages, myogenic and fibroblastic. Mesoderm-derived myogenic progenitors form muscle cells whereas fibroblastic cells give rise to the supportive connective tissue of skeletal muscles, such as the tendons and perimysium. It remains unknown how myogenic and fibroblastic cell–cell interactions affect cell fate determination and the organization of skeletal muscle. In the present study, we investigated the functional significance of cell–cell interactions in regulating skeletal muscle development. Our study shows that cranial neural crest (CNC) cells give rise to the fibroblastic cells of the tongue skeletal muscle in mice. Loss of Tgfbr2 in CNC cells ( Wnt1-Cre;Tgfbr2 flox/flox ) results in microglossia with reduced Scleraxis and Fgf10 expression as well as decreased myogenic cell proliferation, reduced cell number and disorganized tongue muscles. Furthermore, TGF-β2 beads induced the expression of Scleraxis in tongue explant cultures. The addition of FGF10 rescued the muscle cell number in Wnt1-Cre;Tgfbr2 flox/flox mice. Thus, TGF-β induced FGF10 signaling has a critical function in regulating tissue–tissue interaction during tongue skeletal muscle development.