Neuronal-epithelial cross-talk drives acinar specification via NRG1-ERBB3-mTORC2 signaling.

ABSTRACT: Acinar cells are the principal secretory units of multiple exocrine organs. A single-cell, layered, lumenized acinus forms from a large cohort of epithelial progenitors that must initiate and coordinate three cellular programs of acinar specification, namely, lineage progression, secretion, and polarization. Despite this well-known outcome, the mechanism(s) that regulate these complex programs are unknown. Here, we demonstrate that neuronal-epithelial cross-talk drives acinar specification through neuregulin (NRG1)-ERBB3-mTORC2 signaling. Using single-cell and global RNA sequencing of developing murine salivary glands, we identified NRG1-ERBB3 to precisely overlap with acinar specification during gland development. Genetic deletion of Erbb3 prevented cell lineage progression and the establ

SUBMITTER: May AJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9727910 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature