Involvement of the Wnt/β-catenin pathway in neurectoderm architecture in Platynereis dumerilii
Abstract
Signalling pathways are essential for the correct development of the central nervous system (CNS) in bilaterian animals. Here we show that in the CNS of the annelid Platynereis dumerilii, neural progenitor cells (NPCs) are located close to the ventral midline and express axin, a negative regulator of the Wnt/b-catenin pathway. Using pharmacological inhibitors, we observe that Wnt/b-catenin is required for the transition between proliferating NPCs and differentiating neurons. We also show that the Rho-associated kinase (Rok) is necessary for neurectoderm morphogenesis and ventral midline formation, and indirectly affects the distribution of the NPCs and the development of axonal scaffolds. Moreover, seven genes belonging to the planar cell polarity (PCP) pathway are expressed in the developing Platynereis neurectoderm, suggesting an involvement in its morphogenesis. When compared with previous studies in vertebrates, our data suggest that the involvement of the Wnt/b-catenin pathway in the control of neural cell proliferation/differentiation is ancestral to bilaterians.
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BibTeX
@article{demilly2026involvement,
title = {{Involvement of the Wnt/β-catenin pathway in neurectoderm architecture in Platynereis dumerilii}},
author = {Adrien Demilly and Patrick Steinmetz and Eve Gazave and Lauriane Marchand and Michel Vervoort},
journal = {Nature Communications},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.1038/ncomms2915},
url = {https://hal.science/hal-05769942v1},
note = {CC BY-NC 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Involvement of the Wnt/β-catenin pathway in neurectoderm architecture in Platynereis dumerilii
AU - Adrien Demilly
AU - Patrick Steinmetz
AU - Eve Gazave
AU - Lauriane Marchand
AU - Michel Vervoort
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/29
JO - Nature Communications
DO - 10.1038/ncomms2915
UR - https://hal.science/hal-05769942v1
AB - Signalling pathways are essential for the correct development of the central nervous system (CNS) in bilaterian animals. Here we show that in the CNS of the annelid Platynereis dumerilii, neural progenitor cells (NPCs) are located close to the ventral midline and express axin, a negative regulator of the Wnt/b-catenin pathway. Using pharmacological inhibitors, we observe that Wnt/b-catenin is required for the transition between proliferating NPCs and differentiating neurons. We also show that the Rho-associated kinase (Rok) is necessary for neurectoderm morphogenesis and ventral midline formation, and indirectly affects the distribution of the NPCs and the development of axonal scaffolds. Moreover, seven genes belonging to the planar cell polarity (PCP) pathway are expressed in the developing Platynereis neurectoderm, suggesting an involvement in its morphogenesis. When compared with previous studies in vertebrates, our data suggest that the involvement of the Wnt/b-catenin pathway in the control of neural cell proliferation/differentiation is ancestral to bilaterians.
SN - 2041-1723
SN - 2041-1723
ER -