2019 Fiscal Year Final Research Report
Elasticity in neuroepithelium supports cortical development
| Project/Area Number |
17K08489
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| Research Category |
Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
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| Allocation Type | Multi-year Fund |
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| Section | 一般 |
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| Research Field |
General anatomy (including histology/embryology)
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| Research Institution | Nagoya University |
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Principal Investigator |
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| Project Period (FY) |
2017-04-01 – 2020-03-31
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| Keywords | 大脳発生 / 幹細胞 |
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| Outline of Final Research Achievements |
Neural progenitor cells (NPCs), which are apicobasally elongated and densely packed in the developing brain, systematically move their nuclei/somata in a cell cycle-dependent manner, called interkinetic nuclear migration (IKNM). Our quantitative cell-biological and in silico analyses revealed that tissue elasticity mechanically assists an initial step of basalward IKNM. When the soma of an M-phase progenitor cell rounds up using actomyosin within the subapical space, a microzone within 10 μm from the surface, which is compressed and elastic because of the apical surface’s contractility, laterally pushes the densely neigh- boring processes of non-M-phase cells. The pressed processes then recoil centripetally and basally to propel the nuclei/somata of the progenitor’s daughter cells. Thus, indirect neighbor-assisted transfer of mechanical energy from mother to daughter helps efficient brain development.
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| Free Research Field |
発生学
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| Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements |
「再生医療」の核となるオルガノイドの形成過程では、細胞集団が自立的に秩序立った積み重なりを産み出すことが知られていました。この「自己組織化」の原理は、実はよく判っていなかったのです。本研究で明らかになった「力の受け渡しによる細胞産生・供給方向の秩序化」は、大脳発生のみに留まらず、多細胞の積み重なりに秩序を与えて組織を形成する過程の一般的な原理のひとつであると思われます。
またヒトの脳は本研究でモデルとしたマウスよりも、はるかにたくさんの細胞が積み重なっています。もしかしたら、ヒトの脳ではより効率的で洗練された「力の受け渡し」メカニズムが存在しているのかもしれません。
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