<i>Xenopus</i>, a Model to Study Wound Healing and Regeneration: Experimental Approaches

Slater, Paula G.; Palacios, Miriam; Larraı́n, Juan

doi:10.1101/pdb.top100966

Cited by 6 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 77 publications

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“…Moreover, X. laevis at the tadpole stages exhibits a remarkable regenerative capacity: many tissues and organs, including the spinal cord, lens, tail and limbs, can be regenerated. This ability, however, decreases throughout metamorphosis progression and is almost completely lost after metamorphosis and therefore in adult life [ 61 , 62 ]. X. laevis has been also crucial in the identification of the mechanisms governing axon guidance.…”

Section: Xenopus In Developmental Studiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Xenopus laevis (Daudin, 1802) as a Model Organism for Bioscience: A Historic Review and Perspective

Carotenuto

Pallotta

Tussellino

et al. 2023

Biology

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In vitro systems have been mainly promoted by authorities to sustain research by following the 3Rs principle, but continuously increasing amounts of evidence point out that in vivo experimentation is also of extreme relevance. Xenopus laevis, an anuran amphibian, is a significant model organism in the study of evolutionary developmental biology, toxicology, ethology, neurobiology, endocrinology, immunology and tumor biology; thanks to the recent development of genome editing, it has also acquired a relevant position in the field of genetics. For these reasons, X. laevis appears to be a powerful and alternative model to the zebrafish for environmental and biomedical studies. Its life cycle, as well as the possibility to obtain gametes from adults during the whole year and embryos by in vitro fertilization, allows experimental studies of several biological endpoints, such as gametogenesis, embryogenesis, larval growth, metamorphosis and, of course, the young and adult stages. Moreover, with respect to alternative invertebrate and even vertebrate animal models, the X. laevis genome displays a higher degree of similarity with that of mammals. Here, we have reviewed the main available literature on the use of X. laevis in the biosciences and, inspired by Feymann’s revised view, “Plenty of room for biology at the bottom,” suggest that X. laevis is a very useful model for all possible studies.

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Section: Xenopus In Developmental Studiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Xenopus laevis (Daudin, 1802) as a Model Organism for Bioscience: A Historic Review and Perspective

Carotenuto

Pallotta

Tussellino

et al. 2023

Biology

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“…Third, because embryos can develop over the course of hours or days prior to nervous system formation, other means of long-range communication must presumably be used to transmit or receive information. An additional reason to study cortical excitability in embryos stems from the fact that they (and their developmental precursors–oocytes and eggs) have a well-characterized cortical cytoskeletal response to wounding that involves many of the same participants employed during cortical excitability, including F-actin, myosin-2, and the small GTPases–Rho, Rac, and Cdc42 ( Bement et al, 1999 ; Mandato and Bement, 2001 ; Benink and Bement, 2005 ; Clark et al, 2009 ; Abreu-Blanco et al, 2011 ; Burkel et al, 2012 ; Soto et al, 2013 ; Abreu-Blanco et al, 2014 ; Verboon and Parkhurst, 2015 ; Slater et al, 2021 ). Because the repair response includes calcium- and Rho GTPase-dependent formation and closure of a contractile array comprising F-actin and myosin-2, along with the associated flow of cortical material toward the wound ( Bement et al, 1999 ; Mandato and Bement, 2001 ; Benink and Bement, 2005 ; Abreu-Blanco et al, 2011 ; Abreu-Blanco et al, 2014 ; Verboon and Parkhurst, 2015 ), wounding represents both a chemical and physical stimulus.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bring the pain: wounding reveals a transition from cortical excitability to epithelial excitability in Xenopus embryos

Sepaniac,

Davenport,

Bement

2024

Front. Cell Dev. Biol.

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The cell cortex plays many critical roles, including interpreting and responding to internal and external signals. One behavior which supports a cell’s ability to respond to both internal and externally-derived signaling is cortical excitability, wherein coupled positive and negative feedback loops generate waves of actin polymerization and depolymerization at the cortex. Cortical excitability is a highly conserved behavior, having been demonstrated in many cell types and organisms. One system well-suited to studying cortical excitability is Xenopus laevis, in which cortical excitability is easily monitored for many hours after fertilization. Indeed, recent investigations using X. laevis have furthered our understanding of the circuitry underlying cortical excitability and how it contributes to cytokinesis. Here, we describe the impact of wounding, which represents both a chemical and a physical signal, on cortical excitability. In early embryos (zygotes to early blastulae), we find that wounding results in a transient cessation (“freezing”) of wave propagation followed by transport of frozen waves toward the wound site. We also find that wounding near cell-cell junctions results in the formation of an F-actin (actin filament)-based structure that pulls the junction toward the wound; at least part of this structure is based on frozen waves. In later embryos (late blastulae to gastrulae), we find that cortical excitability diminishes and is progressively replaced by epithelial excitability, a process in which wounded cells communicate with other cells via wave-like increases of calcium and apical F-actin. While the F-actin waves closely follow the calcium waves in space and time, under some conditions the actin wave can be uncoupled from the calcium wave, suggesting that they may be independently regulated by a common upstream signal. We conclude that as cortical excitability disappears from the level of the individual cell within the embryo, it is replaced by excitability at the level of the embryonic epithelium itself.

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“…In order to elucidate the mechanism of wound regeneration, it is necessary to mimic the behavior of molecules in animals that have the ability to regenerate. Danio rerio and Xenopus laevis have long been the representatives of such animals, but the skin of amphibians and fish differs from that of mammals [ 3 , 4 ]. In mammals, complete scar regeneration occurs early in the mouse developmental stage, switching between periods of visible and histological scarring as development progresses [ 5 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Compound 13 Promotes Epidermal Healing in Mouse Fetuses via Activation of AMPK

et al. 2023

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Unlike adults, early developing fetuses can completely regenerate tissue, and replicating this could lead to the development of treatments to reduce scarring. Mice epidermal structures, including wound healing patterns, are regenerated until embryonic day (E) 13, leaving visible scars thereafter. These patterns require actin cable formation at the epithelial wound margin through AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) activation. We aimed to investigate whether the administration of compound 13 (C13), a recently discovered AMPK activator, to the wound could reproduce this actin remodeling and skin regeneration pattern through its AMPK activating effect. The C13 administration resulted in partial formations of actin cables, which would normally result in scarring, and scar reduction during the healing of full-layer skin defects that occurred in E14 and E15 fetuses. Furthermore, C13 was found to cause AMPK activation in these embryonic mouse epidermal cells. Along with AMPK activation, Rac1 signaling, which is involved in leaflet pseudopodia formation and cell migration, was suppressed in C13-treated wounds, indicating that C13 inhibits epidermal cell migration. This suggests that actin may be mobilized by C13 for cable formation. Administration of C13 to wounds may achieve wound healing similar to regenerative wound healing patterns and may be a potential candidate for new treatments to heal scars.

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Xenopus, a Model to Study Wound Healing and Regeneration: Experimental Approaches

Cited by 6 publications

References 77 publications

Xenopus laevis (Daudin, 1802) as a Model Organism for Bioscience: A Historic Review and Perspective

Xenopus laevis (Daudin, 1802) as a Model Organism for Bioscience: A Historic Review and Perspective

Bring the pain: wounding reveals a transition from cortical excitability to epithelial excitability in Xenopus embryos

Compound 13 Promotes Epidermal Healing in Mouse Fetuses via Activation of AMPK

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