Comparative Analysis of Ear-Hole Closure Identifies Epimorphic Regeneration as a Discrete Trait in Mammals

Authors

Thomas R. Gawriluk, University of KentuckyFollow
Jennifer Simkin, University of KentuckyFollow
Katherine L. Thompson, University of KentuckyFollow
Shishir K. Biswas, University of KentuckyFollow
Zak Clare-Salzler, University of KentuckyFollow
John M. Kimani, University of Nairobi, Kenya
Stephen G. Kiama, University of Nairobi, Kenya
Jeramiah James Smith, University of KentuckyFollow
Vanessa O. Ezenwa, University of Georgia
Ashley W. Seifert, University of KentuckyFollow

Abstract

Why mammals have poor regenerative ability has remained a long-standing question in biology. In regenerating vertebrates, injury can induce a process known as epimorphic regeneration to replace damaged structures. Using a 4-mm ear punch assay across multiple mammalian species, here we show that several Acomys spp. (spiny mice) and Oryctolagus cuniculus completely regenerate tissue, whereas other rodents including MRL/MpJ ‘healer’ mice heal similar injuries by scarring. We demonstrate ear-hole closure is independent of ear size, and closure rate can be modelled with a cubic function. Cellular and genetic analyses reveal that injury induces blastema formation in Acomys cahirinus. Despite cell cycle re-entry in Mus musculus and A. cahirinus, efficient cell cycle progression and proliferation only occurs in spiny mice. Together, our data unite blastema-mediated regeneration in spiny mice with regeneration in other vertebrates such as salamanders, newts and zebrafish, where all healthy adults regenerate in response to injury.

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

4-25-2016

Notes/Citation Information

Published in Nature Communications, v. 7, article no. 11164, p. 1-16.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in the credit line; if the material is not included under the Creative Commons license, users will need to obtain permission from the license holder to reproduce the material. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms11164

Funding Information

Funding for this work was provided by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Office for International Science and Engineering (OISE) to A.W.S. (IOS-1353713) and V.O.E. (IOS-1353857). Additional funding was provided to A.W.S. by the University of Kentucky.

Related Content

Sequencing data have been deposited in the NCBI database under accession code GSE71761.

Repository Citation

Gawriluk, Thomas R.; Simkin, Jennifer; Thompson, Katherine L.; Biswas, Shishir K.; Clare-Salzler, Zak; Kimani, John M.; Kiama, Stephen G.; Smith, Jeramiah James; Ezenwa, Vanessa O.; and Seifert, Ashley W., "Comparative Analysis of Ear-Hole Closure Identifies Epimorphic Regeneration as a Discrete Trait in Mammals" (2016). Biology Faculty Publications. 108.
https://uknowledge.uky.edu/biology_facpub/108