Single-cell atlas comparison across vertebrates reveals auditory cell evolution and mechanisms for hair cell regeneration
Mammals suffer permanent hearing impairment from the loss of auditory hair cells due to their inability to regenerate. In contrast, lower vertebrates exhibit extraordinary capacity for hair cell regeneration and hearing restoration, but the mechanisms remain unclear. Here we characterize the single-cell atlas of Xenopus laevis inner ear and perform a comprehensive comparison with mouse model. An exceptionally conserved inner ear neuronal cell type is discovered. The results reveal that the outer hair cells (OHCs) exist exclusively in mammals. Importantly, our analyses reveal an orchestrated gene expression program in Xenopus, characterized by upregulation of hair cell regeneration-related genes, coupled with downregulation of proliferation inhibitory genes. These findings unveil a natural feature of regenerative capacity in Xenopus, and provide molecular and evolutionary evidences for differential regenerative capacities across vertebrates. This work offers insights from amphibians into developing strategies to solve the challenges of hair cell regeneration in humans.
Authors
- Hua‐Jun Wu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3498-3095)
- Xu Guo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0005-4329-8198)
- Bicheng Zhu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2803-8206)
- Mengzhen Yan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0008-8418-7429)
- Xuemei Song
- Wenxiu Li (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5015-760X)
- Haojie Wang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9357-5601)
- Yafan Wang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0001-1581-3958)
- Futing Lai
- Jun Li (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1746-6793)
- Jianguo Cui (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8746-2803)
- Penghui Zhang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6512-1511)
- Xiaomeng Zhao (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8795-766X)
- Jieran Dong
Institutions
- University of Electronic Science and Technology of China (CN)
- Chinese Academy of Sciences (CN)
- Peking University (CN)
- Sichuan Agricultural University (CN)
- Peking University Cancer Hospital (CN)
- Chinese Institute for Brain Research (CN)
- Ministry of Education (ET)
- Chengdu Institute of Biology (CN)
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (CN)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Communications Biology
- Published
- 2024-12-19
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s42003-024-07335-7
- Citations
- 3
- Primary Topic
- Hearing, Cochlea, Tinnitus, Genetics
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 1.08
Funders
- National Natural Science Foundation of China
- Peking University
- Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities