Evidence from oyster suggests an ancient role for Pdx in regulating insulin gene expression in animals

Fei Xu (), Ferdinand Marlétaz, Daria Gavriouchkina, Xiao Liu, Tatjana Sauka-Spengler, Guofan Zhang and Peter W. H. Holland
Additional contact information
Fei Xu: University of Oxford
Ferdinand Marlétaz: University of Oxford
Daria Gavriouchkina: Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University
Xiao Liu: Zhejiang Ocean University
Tatjana Sauka-Spengler: University of Oxford
Guofan Zhang: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Peter W. H. Holland: University of Oxford

Nature Communications, 2021, vol. 12, issue 1, 1-11

Abstract: Abstract Hox and ParaHox genes encode transcription factors with similar expression patterns in divergent animals. The Pdx (Xlox) homeobox gene, for example, is expressed in a sharp spatial domain in the endodermal cell layer of the gut in chordates, echinoderms, annelids and molluscs. The significance of comparable gene expression patterns is unclear because it is not known if downstream transcriptional targets are also conserved. Here, we report evidence indicating that a classic transcriptional target of Pdx1 in vertebrates, the insulin gene, is a likely direct target of Pdx in Pacific oyster adults. We show that one insulin-related gene, cgILP, is co-expressed with cgPdx in oyster digestive tissue. Transcriptomic comparison suggests that this tissue plays a similar role to the vertebrate pancreas. Using ATAC-seq and ChIP, we identify an upstream regulatory element of the cgILP gene which shows binding interaction with cgPdx protein in oyster hepatopancreas and demonstrate, using a cell culture assay, that the oyster Pdx can act as a transcriptional activator through this site, possibly in synergy with NeuroD. These data argue that a classic homeodomain-target gene interaction dates back to the origin of Bilateria.

Date: 2021
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-021-23216-7 Abstract (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:nat:natcom:v:12:y:2021:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-021-23216-7

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
https://www.nature.com/ncomms/

DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-23216-7

Access Statistics for this article

Nature Communications is currently edited by Nathalie Le Bot, Enda Bergin and Fiona Gillespie

More articles in Nature Communications from Nature
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sonal Shukla () and Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing ().