| First Author | Cotton JL | Year | 2017 |
| Journal | Dev Cell | Volume | 43 |
| Issue | 1 | Pages | 35-47.e4 |
| PubMed ID | 28943241 | Mgi Jnum | J:245870 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:5919369 | Doi | 10.1016/j.devcel.2017.08.019 |
| Citation | Cotton JL, et al. (2017) YAP/TAZ and Hedgehog Coordinate Growth and Patterning in Gastrointestinal Mesenchyme. Dev Cell 43(1):35-47.e4 |
| abstractText | YAP/TAZ are the major mediators of mammalian Hippo signaling; however, their precise function in the gastrointestinal tract remains poorly understood. Here we dissect the distinct roles of YAP/TAZ in endodermal epithelium and mesenchyme and find that, although dispensable for gastrointestinal epithelial development and homeostasis, YAP/TAZ function as the critical molecular switch to coordinate growth and patterning in gut mesenchyme. Our genetic analyses reveal that Lats1/2 kinases suppress expansion of the primitive mesenchymal progenitors, where YAP activation also prevents induction of the smooth muscle lineage through transcriptional repression of Myocardin. During later development, zone-restricted downregulation of YAP/TAZ provides the positional cue and allows smooth muscle cell differentiation induced by Hedgehog signaling. Taken together, our studies identify the mesenchymal requirement of YAP/TAZ in the gastrointestinal tract and highlight the functional interplays between Hippo and Hedgehog signaling underlying temporal and spatial control of tissue growth and specification in developing gut. |
