New Insights into Development of Female Reproductive Tract—Hedgehog-Signal Response in Wolffian Tissues Directly Contributes to Uterus Development

Autor: Ryuma Haraguchi, Gen Yamada, Aki Murashima, Daisuke Matsumaru, Riko Kitazawa, Sohei Kitazawa
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2021
Předmět:
Zdroj: International Journal of Molecular Sciences, Vol 22, Iss 3, p 1211 (2021)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 1422-0067
1661-6596
DOI: 10.3390/ijms22031211
Popis: The reproductive tract in mammals emerges from two ductal systems during embryogenesis: Wolffian ducts (WDs) and Mullerian ducts (MDs). Most of the female reproductive tract (FRT) including the oviducts, uterine horn and cervix, originate from MDs. It is widely accepted that the formation of MDs depends on the preformed WDs within the urogenital primordia. Here, we found that the WD mesenchyme under the regulation of Hedgehog (Hh) signaling is closely related to the developmental processes of the FRT during embryonic and postnatal periods. Deficiency of Sonic hedgehog (Shh), the only Hh ligand expressed exclusively in WDs, prevents the MD mesenchyme from affecting uterine growth along the radial axis. The in vivo cell tracking approach revealed that after WD regression, distinct cells responding to WD-derived Hh signal continue to exist in the developing FRT and gradually contribute to the formation of various tissues such as smooth muscle, endometrial stroma and vascular vessel, in the mouse uterus. Our study thus provides a novel developmental mechanism of FRT relying on WD.
Databáze: Directory of Open Access Journals