Apical contacts stemming from incomplete delamination guide progenitor cell allocation through a dragging mechanism
Eduardo Pulgar,
Cornelia Schwayer,
Néstor Guerrero,
Loreto López,
Susana Márquez,
Steffen Härtel,
Rodrigo Soto,
Carl-Philipp Heisenberg,
Miguel L Concha
Affiliations
Eduardo Pulgar
Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile; Biomedical Neuroscience Institute, Santiago, Chile
Cornelia Schwayer
Institute of Science and Technology Austria, Klosterneuburg, Austria
Néstor Guerrero
Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile; Biomedical Neuroscience Institute, Santiago, Chile
Loreto López
Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile; Biomedical Neuroscience Institute, Santiago, Chile
Susana Márquez
Physics Department, FCFM, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile
Steffen Härtel
Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile; Biomedical Neuroscience Institute, Santiago, Chile; National Center for Health Information Systems, CENS, Santiago, Chile
Rodrigo Soto
Physics Department, FCFM, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile
Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile; Biomedical Neuroscience Institute, Santiago, Chile; Center for Geroscience, Brain Health and Metabolism, Santiago, Chile
The developmental strategies used by progenitor cells to allow a safe journey from their induction place towards the site of terminal differentiation are still poorly understood. Here, we uncovered a mechanism of progenitor cell allocation that stems from an incomplete process of epithelial delamination that allows progenitors to coordinate their movement with adjacent extra-embryonic tissues. Progenitors of the zebrafish laterality organ originate from the superficial epithelial enveloping layer by an apical constriction process of cell delamination. During this process, progenitors retain long-lasting apical contacts that enable the epithelial layer to pull a subset of progenitors on their way to the vegetal pole. The remaining delaminated cells follow the movement of apically attached progenitors by a protrusion-dependent cell-cell contact mechanism, avoiding sequestration by the adjacent endoderm, ensuring their collective fate and allocation at the site of differentiation. Thus, we reveal that incomplete delamination serves as a cellular platform for coordinated tissue movements during development.