Temporospatial hierarchy and allele-specific expression of zygotic genome activation revealed by distant interspecific urochordate hybrids

Zygotic genome activation (ZGA) is a universal process in early embryogenesis of metazoan, when the quiescent zygotic nucleus initiates global transcription. However, the mechanisms related to massive genome activation and allele-specific expression (ASE) remain not well understood. Here, we develop...

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Published in:Nature communications Vol. 15; no. 1; p. 2395
Main Authors: Wei, Jiankai, Zhang, Wei, Jiang, An, Peng, Hongzhe, Zhang, Quanyong, Li, Yuting, Bi, Jianqing, Wang, Linting, Liu, Penghui, Wang, Jing, Ge, Yonghang, Zhang, Liya, Yu, Haiyan, Li, Lei, Wang, Shi, Leng, Liang, Chen, Kai, Dong, Bo
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 16-03-2024
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Summary:Zygotic genome activation (ZGA) is a universal process in early embryogenesis of metazoan, when the quiescent zygotic nucleus initiates global transcription. However, the mechanisms related to massive genome activation and allele-specific expression (ASE) remain not well understood. Here, we develop hybrids from two deeply diverged (120 Mya) ascidian species to symmetrically document the dynamics of ZGA. We identify two coordinated ZGA waves represent early developmental and housekeeping gene reactivation, respectively. Single-cell RNA sequencing reveals that the major expression wave exhibits spatial heterogeneity and significantly correlates with cell fate. Moreover, allele-specific expression occurs in a species- rather than parent-related manner, demonstrating the divergence of cis-regulatory elements between the two species. These findings provide insights into ZGA in chordates. Wei et al. report a unique interspecific ascidian hybrid system and single-cell RNA sequencing to reveal the temporal hierarchy, spatial heterogeneity, and allele-specific expression of zygotic genome activation in urochordates.
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ISSN:2041-1723
2041-1723
DOI:10.1038/s41467-024-46780-0