Reawakening GDNF's regenerative past in mice and humans

• DOI: 10.1016/j.reth.2022.03.008
• Publication Date: 2022-04-19T03:50:49Z
• Authors: Andres Samos; Vanessa McGaughey; Sandra Rieger; Thomas S. Lisse
• Keywords: Neogenesis; Regenerative Medicine

The ability of an animal to regenerate lost tissue and body parts has obviously life-saving implications. Understanding how this became restricted or active in specific lineages will help us understand our own regeneration. According phylogenic analysis, the glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) signaling pathway, but not other family members, is conserved axolotls, a salamander with remarkable regenerative capacity. Furthermore, comparing pro-regenerative Spiny mouse its less descendant, House mouse, revealed that GDNF was induced regenerating mice. receptor expression may promote hair follicle neogenesis - important feature skin regeneration by determining fate dermal fibroblasts as part new follicles. These findings support idea treatment humans demonstrating pathway's ancestral cellular nature.