ArticleNature ecology & evolution2017
Gut-like ectodermal tissue in a sea anemone challenges germ layer homology.
Article in Nature ecology & evolution, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 67 papers.
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67 citing papers in PubMed, 160 citations in OpenAlex.
- Loss of Twist impairs tentacle development and induces epithelial neoplasia in the sea anemone Nematostella vectensis.Development (Cambridge, England) · 2026Article
- A single-cell transcriptomic atlas reveals the emergence of medusa-specific cell states in the scyphozoan Aurelia coerulea.PLoS biology · 2026Article
- Extreme conservation of cnidarian stinging cell identity despite 600 million years of evolution.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Functional Analysis of Ligand-Gated Chloride Channels in a Cnidarian Sheds Light on the Evolution of Inhibitory Signaling.Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany) · 2026Article
- Notch coordinates self-organization of germ layers and axial polarity in sea anemone gastruloids.Nature communications · 2026Article
- Evolutionary rewiring of the endomesoderm gene regulatory networks specify skeleton secreting cells in stony corals.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Cellular and transcriptional trajectories of neural fate specification in sea anemone uncover two modes of adult neurogenesis.Nature communications · 2026Article
- Hydra at the Crossroads of Evolution: Insights into Cell-type Diversification, Regeneration, and Epigenetic Regulation.Results and problems in cell differentiation · 2026Review
- Decoding cnidarian cell type gene regulation.Nature ecology & evolution · 2026Article
- An abundant membrane protein in the NCAM superfamily is required for epithelial organization in sea anemone embryos.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2025Article
- Molecular evidence from xenacoelomorph gonopore formation supports homology with the bilaterian anus.Nature ecology & evolution · 2025Article
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- Segregation of endoderm and mesoderm germ layer identities in the diploblast Nematostella vectensis.Nature communications · 2025Article
- Depletion of a neural cell adhesion molecule disrupts both epithelial and germ layer identity in sea anemone embryos.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2025Article
- The property of larval cells of the scleractinian coral, Acropora tenuis, deduced from in vitro cultured cells.Development, growth & differentiation · 2025Article
- β-catenin-driven endomesoderm specification is a Bilateria-specific novelty.Nature communications · 2025Article
- A whole-body atlas of BMP signaling activity in an adult sea anemone.BMC biology · 2025Article
- Mechanical induction in metazoan development and evolution: from earliest multi-cellular organisms to modern animal embryos.Nature communications · 2024Review
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7 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
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4 authors at 1 institution in 3 countries.
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Abstract
Cnidarians (for example, sea anemones and jellyfish) develop from an outer ectodermal and inner endodermal germ layer, whereas bilaterians (for example, vertebrates and flies) additionally have a mesodermal layer as intermediate germ layer. Currently, cnidarian endoderm (that is, 'mesendoderm') is considered homologous to both bilaterian endoderm and mesoderm. Here we test this hypothesis by studying the fate of germ layers, the localization of gut cell types, and the expression of numerous 'endodermal' and 'mesodermal' transcription factor orthologues in the anthozoan sea anemone Nematostella vectensis. Surprisingly, we find that the developing pharyngeal ectoderm and its derivatives display a transcription-factor expression profile (foxA, hhex, islet, soxB1, hlxB9, tbx2/3, nkx6 and nkx2.2) and cell-type combination (exocrine and insulinergic) reminiscent of the developing bilaterian midgut, and, in particular, vertebrate pancreatic tissue. Endodermal derivatives, instead, display cell functions and transcription-factor profiles similar to bilaterian mesoderm derivatives (for example, somatic gonad and heart). Thus, our data supports an alternative model of germ layer homologies, where cnidarian pharyngeal ectoderm corresponds to bilaterian endoderm, and the cnidarian endoderm is homologous to bilaterian mesoderm.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.