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The primary cilia play essential roles in Hh-dependent Gli2 activation and Gli3 proteolytic processing in mammals. However, the roles of the cilia in Gli1 activation remain unresolved due to the loss of Gli1 transcription in cilia mutant embryos, and the inability to address this question by overexpression in cultured cells. Here, we address the roles of the cilia in Gli1 activation by expressing Gli1 from the Gli2 locus in mouse embryos. We find that the maximal activation of Gli1 depends on the cilia, but partial activation of Gli1 by Smo-mediated Hh signaling exists in the absence of the cilia. Combined with reduced Gli3 repressors, this partial activation of Gli1 leads to dorsal expansion of V3 interneuron and motor neuron domains in the absence of the cilia. Moreover, expressing Gli1 from the Gli2 locus in the presence of reduced Sufu has no recognizable impact on neural tube patterning, suggesting an imbalance between the dosages of Gli and Sufu does not explain the extra Gli1 activity. Finally, a non-ciliary Gli2 variant present at a higher level than Gli1 when expressed from the Gli2 locus fails to activate Hh pathway ectopically in the absence of the cilia, suggesting that increased protein level is unlikely the major factor underlying the ectopic activation of Hh signaling by Gli1 in the absence of the cilia. 

Apes possess two sex chromosomes—the male-specific Y chromosome and the X chromosome, which is present in both males and females. The Y chromosome is crucial for male reproduction, with deletions being linked to infertility¹. The X chromosome is vital for reproduction and cognition². Variation in mating patterns and brain function among apes suggests corresponding differences in their sex chromosomes. However, owing to their repetitive nature and incomplete reference assemblies, ape sex chromosomes have been challenging to study. Here, using the methodology developed for the telomere-to-telomere (T2T) human genome, we produced gapless assemblies of the X and Y chromosomes for five great apes (bonobo (Pan paniscus), chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes), western lowland gorilla (Gorilla gorilla gorilla), Bornean orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus) and Sumatran orangutan (Pongo abelii)) and a lesser ape (the siamang gibbon (Symphalangus syndactylus)), and untangled the intricacies of their evolution. Compared with the X chromosomes, the ape Y chromosomes vary greatly in size and have low alignability and high levels of structural rearrangements—owing to the accumulation of lineage-specific ampliconic regions, palindromes, transposable elements and satellites. Many Y chromosome genes expand in multi-copy families and some evolve under purifying selection. Thus, the Y chromosome exhibits dynamic evolution, whereas the X chromosome is more stable. Mapping short-read sequencing data to these assemblies revealed diversity and selection patterns on sex chromosomes of more than 100 individual great apes. These reference assemblies are expected to inform human evolution and conservation genetics of non-human apes, all of which are endangered species.