Elsevier

Developmental Biology

Volume 454, Issue 1, 1 October 2019, Pages 44-51
Developmental Biology

Original research article
Fibroblast growth factor signaling mediates progenitor cell aggregation and nephron regeneration in the adult zebrafish kidney

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ydbio.2019.06.011Get rights and content
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Highlights

  • Adult zebrafish kidneys regenerate nephrons after injury from a resident kidney stem cell population.

  • Kidney injury induces expression of multiple FGF ligands and receptors.

  • FGF signaling is required for kidney progenitor cell aggregation at sites of new nephron formation.

  • FGF10 and FGF4 function as chemotactic factors to recruit kidney progenitors.

  • FGF signaling is required to maintain adhesive cell rosettes that give rise to new nephrons.

Abstract

The zebrafish kidney regenerates after injury by development of new nephrons from resident adult kidney stem cells. Although adult kidney progenitor cells have been characterized by transplantation and single cell RNA seq, signals that stimulate new nephron formation are not known. Here we demonstrate that fibroblast growth factors and FGF signaling is rapidly induced after kidney injury and that FGF signaling is required for recruitment of progenitor cells to sites of new nephron formation. Chemical or dominant negative blockade of Fgfr1 prevented formation of nephron progenitor cell aggregates after injury and during kidney development. Implantation of FGF soaked beads induced local aggregation of lhx1a:EGFP  ​+ ​kidney progenitor cells. Our results reveal a previously unexplored role for FGF signaling in recruitment of renal progenitors to sites of new nephron formation and suggest a role for FGF signaling in maintaining cell adhesion and cell polarity in newly forming kidney epithelia.

Keywords

Kidney
Regeneration
Adult kidney stem cell
Nephron
Fibroblast growth factor

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