Epithelial Ca²⁺ waves triggered by enteric neurons heal the gut.

ABSTRACT: A fundamental and unresolved question in regenerative biology is how tissues return to homeostasis after injury. Answering this question is essential for understanding the etiology of chronic disorders such as inflammatory bowel diseases and cancer. We used the Drosophila midgut to investigate this question and discovered that during regeneration a subpopulation of cholinergic enteric neurons triggers Ca²⁺ currents among enterocytes to promote return of the epithelium to homeostasis. Specifically, we found that down-regulation of the cholinergic enzyme Acetylcholinesterase in the epithelium enables acetylcholine from defined enteric neurons, referred as ARCENs, to activate nicotinic receptors in enterocytes found near ARCEN-innervations. This activation triggers high Ca

SUBMITTER: Petsakou A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10461974 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature