A single-cell atlas of West African lungfish respiratory system reveals evolutionary adaptations to terrestrialization

Ruihua Zhang, Qun Liu, Shanshan Pan, Yingying Zhang, Yating Qin, Xiao Du, Zengbao Yuan, Yongrui Lu, Yue Song, Mengqi Zhang, Nannan Zhang, Jie Ma, Zhe Zhang, Xiaodong Jia, Kun Wang, Shunping He, Shanshan Liu, Ming Ni, Xin Liu, Xun Xu, Huanming Yang, Jian Wang, Inge Seim () and Guangyi Fan ()
Additional contact information
Ruihua Zhang: University of Chinese Academy of Sciences
Qun Liu: BGI Research
Shanshan Pan: BGI Research
Yingying Zhang: BGI Research
Yating Qin: BGI Research
Xiao Du: BGI Research
Zengbao Yuan: University of Chinese Academy of Sciences
Yongrui Lu: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Yue Song: BGI Research
Mengqi Zhang: BGI Research
Nannan Zhang: BGI Research
Jie Ma: BGI Research
Zhe Zhang: MGI Tech
Xiaodong Jia: Liaocheng People’s Hospital
Kun Wang: Northwestern Polytechnical University
Shunping He: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Shanshan Liu: BGI Research
Ming Ni: BGI Research
Xin Liu: BGI Research
Xun Xu: BGI Research
Huanming Yang: BGI Research
Jian Wang: BGI Research
Inge Seim: Nanjing Normal University
Guangyi Fan: BGI Research

Nature Communications, 2023, vol. 14, issue 1, 1-15

Abstract: Abstract The six species of lungfish possess both lungs and gills and are the closest extant relatives of tetrapods. Here, we report a single-cell transcriptome atlas of the West African lungfish (Protopterus annectens). This species manifests the most extreme form of terrestrialization, a life history strategy to survive dry periods that can last for years, characterized by dormancy and reversible adaptive changes of the gills and lungs. Our atlas highlights the cell type diversity of the West African lungfish, including gene expression consistent with phenotype changes of terrestrialization. Comparison with terrestrial tetrapods and ray-finned fishes reveals broad homology between the swim bladder and lung cell types as well as shared and idiosyncratic changes of the external gills of the West African lungfish and the internal gills of Atlantic salmon. The single-cell atlas presented here provides a valuable resource for further exploration of the respiratory system evolution in vertebrates and the diversity of lungfish terrestrialization.

Date: 2023
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-41309-3

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