研究概要

RESEARCH: Evolution from unicellular to multicellular organisms II (Mechanisms to make non-stem cells)

Liechi Zhang (graduate student in SOKENDAI [The Graduate University for Advanced Studies]) and Asist. Prof. Masaki Ishikawa

A stem cell is a cell to be able to self-renew and to produce a differentiated cell. Unicellular organisms are similar to stem cells, since they self-renew and can be changed to reproductive cells. For the evolution of multicellular organisms, regulatory mechanisms to regulate non-stem cells in addition to stem cells should have evolved.

When we isolate a single gametophore leaf cell of the moss Physcomitrella patens, the cell is autonomously reprogrammed to be a chloronema apical stem cell. However, when we isolate two adjacent cells, only one changes to a stem cell but the other remains to be a leaf cell. This suggests that reprogramming cells to be a stem cell produce an inhibitory factor to neighboring cells not to be stem cells (Sato et al. 2017). Mr. Liechi Zhang, a graduate student from China supported by the MEXT fellowship is studying the molecular mechanisms with advices of Dr. Masaki Ishikawa.

When we isolate two adjacent cells, only one changes to a stem cell but the other remains to be a leaf cell.

Sato, Y., Sugimoto, N., Hirai, T., Imai, A., Kubo, M., Hiwatashi, Y., Nishiyama, T. and Hasebe, M. 2017.
Cells reprogramming to stem cells inhibit the reprogramming of adjacent cells in the moss Physcomitrella patens
Sci. Rep. 7:1909, doi:10.1038/s41598-017-01786-1