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Atoh1 is required for the formation of lateral line electroreceptors and hair cells, whereas FoxG1 represses an electrosensory fate.

Martin Minařík | Alexander S Campbell | Roman Franěk | Michaela Vazačová | Miloš Havelka | David Gela | Martin Pšenička | Clare V H Baker
eLife | 2025

In electroreceptive jawed fishes and amphibians, individual lateral line placodes form lines of neuromasts on the head containing mechanosensory hair cells, flanked by fields of ampullary organs containing electroreceptors-modified hair cells that respond to weak electric fields. Extensively shared gene expression between neuromasts and ampullary organs suggests that conserved molecular mechanisms are involved in their development, but a few transcription factor genes are restricted either to the developing electrosensory or mechanosensory lateral line. Here, we used CRISPR/Cas9-mediated mutagenesis in G0-injected sterlet embryos (Acipenser ruthenus, a sturgeon) to test the function of three such genes. We found that the 'hair cell' transcription factor gene Atoh1 is required for both hair cell and electroreceptor differentiation in sterlet, and for Pou4f3 and Gfi1 expression in both neuromasts and ampullary organs. These data support the conservation of developmental mechanisms between hair cells and electroreceptors. Targeting ampullary organ-restricted Neurod4 did not yield any phenotype, potentially owing to redundancy with other Neurod genes that we found to be expressed in sterlet ampullary organs. After targeting mechanosensory-restricted Foxg1, ampullary organs formed within neuromast lines, suggesting that FoxG1 normally represses their development, whether directly or indirectly. We speculate that electrosensory organs may be the 'default' developmental fate of lateral line primordia in electroreceptive vertebrates.

Pubmed ID: 40560632

Research resources used in this publication

None found

Antibodies used in this publication

None found

Associated grants

  • Agency: Isaac Newton Trust,
    Id: Grant 20.07(c)
  • Agency: Anatomical Society,
    Id: Research Studentship
  • Agency: Cambridge Philosophical Society,
    Id: Research Studentship
  • Agency: Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports of the Czech Republic,
    Id: Projects CENAKVA (LM2018099) and Biodiversity (CZ.02.1.01/0.0/0.0/16_025/0007370)
  • Agency: Czech Science Foundation,
    Id: Project 22-31141J
  • Agency: Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, United Kingdom
    Id: BB/P001947/1
  • Agency: Isaac Newton Trust,
    Id: Grant 20.07 (c)
  • Agency: Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports of the Czech Republic,
    Id: CENAKVA LM2018099
  • Agency: Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports of the Czech Republic,
    Id: Biodiversity CZ.02.1.01/0.0/0.0/16_025/0007370

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