RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 A dynamic, spatially periodic, micro-pattern of HES5 underlies neurogenesis in the mouse spinal cord
JF bioRxiv
FD Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
SP 2020.08.03.234369
DO 10.1101/2020.08.03.234369
A1 V Biga
A1 J Hawley
A1 X Soto
A1 E Johns
A1 D Han
A1 H Bennett
A1 AD Adamson
A1 J Kursawe
A1 P Glendinning
A1 C.S Manning
A1 N Papalopulu
YR 2020
UL http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2020/12/13/2020.08.03.234369.abstract
AB Ultradian oscillations of HES Transcription Factors (TFs) at the single cell level, enable cell state transitions. However, the tissue level organisation of HES5 dynamics in neurogenesis is unknown. Here, we analyse the expression of HES5 ex-vivo in the developing mouse ventral spinal cord and identify microclusters of 4-6 cells with positively correlated HES5 level and ultradian dynamics. These microclusters are spatially periodic along the dorsoventral axis and temporally dynamic, alternating between high and low expression with a supra-ultradian persistence time. We show that Notch signaling is required for temporal dynamics but not the spatial periodicity of HES5. Few Neurogenin-2 cells are observed per cluster, irrespective of high or low state, suggesting that the microcluster organization of HES5 enables the stable selection of differentiating cells. Computational modelling predicts that different cell coupling strengths underlie the HES5 spatial patterns and rate of differentiation, which is consistent with comparison between the motoneuron and interneuron progenitor domains. Our work shows a previously unrecognised spatiotemporal organisation of neurogenesis, emergent at the tissue level from the synthesis of single cell dynamics.Synopsis Live imaging of HES5 expression in the ventral mouse spinal cord together with computational modelling is used to identify and analyse spatially periodic HES5 micro-patterns that emerge from the synthesis of single cell dynamics.HES5 is expressed in spatially periodic microclusters along the dorsal-ventral axis in spinal cord that are dynamically maintained by Notch signalling.Microclusters can arise, in part, from single cell oscillators that are synchronous and weakly coupled via Notch.Spatial patterns are different between motorneuron and interneuron progenitor domains and the probability for progenitor differentiation is regulated by the coupling strength between cells.NGN2 is also spatially periodic along the dorso-ventral axis and microclusters of HES5 may act to pick a single NGN2 high cell for differentiation.Competing Interest StatementThe authors have declared no competing interest.