Live imaging approach of dynamic multicellular responses in ERK signaling during vertebrate tissue development.

Tsuyoshi Hirashima

doi:10.1042/bcj20210557

Abstract

The chemical and mechanical responses of cells via the exchange of information during growth and development result in the formation of biological tissues. Information processing within the cells through the signaling pathways and networks inherent to the constituent cells has been well-studied. However, the cell signaling mechanisms responsible for generating dynamic multicellular responses in developing tissues remain unclear. Here, I review the dynamic multicellular response systems during the development and growth of vertebrate tissues based on the extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) pathway. First, an overview of the function of the ERK signaling network in cells is provided, followed by descriptions of biosensors essential for live imaging of the quantification of ERK activity in tissues. Then adducing four examples, I highlight the contribution of live imaging techniques for studying the involvement of spatio-temporal patterns of ERK activity change in tissue development and growth. In addition, theoretical implications of ERK signaling are also discussed from the viewpoint of dynamic systems. This review might help in understanding ERK-mediated dynamic multicellular responses and tissue morphogenesis.

Highlights

During the developmental processes of multicellular organisms, tissues and organs are spontaneously organized through the exchange of information among the constituent cells
This review provides the current state of knowledge and fills the gaps that remain unexplored in previous reviews on extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) signaling pathways in development [3,4]
Based on the images of fixed samples, it has been proposed that the fibroblast growth factor (FGF)-ERK signaling axis reflects the gradient of FGF in the presomitic mesoderm (PSM), a phenomenon that controls the segmentation process [109,110] and lacks the dynamicity associated with ERK activity during somitogenesis

Summary

Introduction

During the developmental processes of multicellular organisms, tissues and organs are spontaneously organized through the exchange of information among the constituent cells. The dynamic aspects of the ERK signaling systems in tissues, which have been uncovered owing to the recent developments in biosensor tools and live imaging techniques, will be discussed.

Results

Conclusion