Background: During gastrulation, endoderm and mesoderm are specified from a bipotential precursor (endomesoderm) that is argued to be homologous across bilaterians. Spiralians also generate mesoderm from ectodermal precursors (ectomesoderm), which arises near the blastopore. While a conserved gene regulatory network controls specification of endomesoderm in deuterostomes and ecdysozoans, little is known about genes controlling specification or behavior of either source of spiralian mesoderm or the digestive tract. Results: Using the mollusc Crepidula, we examined conserved regulatory factors and compared their expression to fate maps to score expression in the germ layers, blastopore lip, and digestive tract. Many genes were expressed in both ecto-and endomesoderm, but only five were expressed in ectomesoderm exclusively. The latter may contribute to epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition seen in ectomesoderm. Conclusions: We present the first comparison of genes expressed during spiralian gastrulation in the context of high-resolution fate maps. We found variation of genes expressed in the blastopore lip, mouth, and cells that will form the anus. Shared expression of many genes in both mesodermal sources suggests that components of the conserved endomesoderm program were either co-opted for ectomesoderm formation or that ecto-and endomesoderm are derived from a common mesodermal precursor that became subdivided into distinct domains during evolution.

Objective— Inflammatory stimuli enhance the progression of atherosclerotic disease. Inflammation also increases the expression of hepcidin, a hormonal regulator of iron homeostasis, which decreases intestinal iron absorption, reduces serum iron levels and traps iron within macrophages. The role of macrophage iron in the development of atherosclerosis remains incompletely understood. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of hepcidin deficiency and decreased macrophage iron on the development of atherosclerosis. Approach and Results— Hepcidin- and LDL (low-density lipoprotein) receptor-deficient ( Hamp −/− / Ldlr −/− ) mice and Hamp +/+ / Ldlr −/− control mice were fed a high-fat diet for 21 weeks. Compared with control mice, Hamp −/− / Ldlr −/− mice had decreased aortic macrophage activity and atherosclerosis. Because hepcidin deficiency is associated with both increased serum iron and decreased macrophage iron, the possibility that increased serum iron was responsible for decreased atherosclerosis in Hamp −/− / Ldlr −/− mice was considered. Hamp +/+ / Ldlr −/− mice were treated with iron dextran so as to produce a 2-fold increase in serum iron. Increased serum iron did not decrease atherosclerosis in Hamp +/+ / Ldlr −/− mice. Aortic macrophages from Hamp −/− / Ldlr −/− mice had less labile free iron and exhibited a reduced proinflammatory (M1) phenotype compared with macrophages from Hamp +/+ / Ldlr −/− mice. THP1 human macrophages treated with an iron chelator were used to model hepcidin deficiency in vitro. Treatment with an iron chelator reduced LPS (lipopolysaccharide)-induced M1 phenotypic expression and decreased uptake of oxidized LDL. Conclusions— In summary, in a hyperlipidemic mouse model, hepcidin deficiency was associated with decreased macrophage iron, a reduced aortic macrophage inflammatory phenotype and protection from atherosclerosis. The results indicate that decreasing hepcidin activity, with the resulting decrease in macrophage iron, may prove to be a novel strategy for the treatment of atherosclerosis.

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