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Developmental insights from non-traditional model organisms
Submission status
Open
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Evolution has yielded an amazing array of traits and abilities, yet biological research is primarily focused on a small subset of species that have been established for laboratory settings. While these efforts have been successful in many regards, this narrow focus can lead us to overlook organisms with interesting qualities, unique positions in the evolutionary tree, or important lessons to offer. Studies into regenerative organisms can elucidate why many species are unable to completely heal after serious wounds. Insights from lamprey help us understand the evolutionary origin of key body structures and cell types. Examination of various plant species may help in developing crops that are hardier in the face of a changing climate. This Collection will feature developmental biology research from non-traditional model organisms and highlight the importance of this work. The editors of Nature Communications, Communications Biology and Scientific Reports invite submissions of primary research that showcase the power of these models and what can be learned from them.
The cellular atlas of Pristina leidyi reveals cell type diversity in adult annelids by single cell transcriptomics, discovering several novel cell types and suggesting a pluripotent stem cell signature associated with adult cell type differentiation
Wei et al. report a unique interspecific ascidian hybrid system and single-cell RNA sequencing to reveal the temporal hierarchy, spatial heterogeneity, and allele-specific expression of zygotic genome activation in urochordates.
Sponges, being early-diverging metazoans and the only animals to develop extensive skeletons of silica, have potential to inform about the evolutionary steps of metazoan traits, including biomineralization. Here, the authors characterize two proteins associated with the hexactinellid sponge silica.
Retinoic acid signaling is involved in patterning the embryonic antero-posterior axis, and also regulates hindbrain segmentation in jawed vertebrates. Here they show that retinoic acid signaling plays important roles in hindbrain segmentation in a jawless vertebrate, the lamprey, thus indicating this feature of hindbrain development is conserved in all vertebrates.
Recent phylogenetic analyses have identified orphan clades, including Xenacoelomorphs, that can offer insights into bilaterian evolution. Here they generate a cell type atlas of Xenoturbella bockithat highlights cellular diversity in the nervous system and other tissues, reinforcing the idea of parallel evolution of cell types across animals.
Adult firefly light organs exhibit flashing signals important for courtship, though how these organs form during development is largely unknown. Here the authors demonstrate that homeobox transcription factors play a patterning role in the development of the adult light organs.
DNA methylation plays a major role in establishing cell identity, but the dynamics of DNA methylation patterns are highly variable across species. Here, the authors discover extensive DNA methylation reprogramming during embryonic development of the sea lamprey, a jawless fish with a distinctive, highly disordered methylome.