The role of the transcription factor Tbx3 in the embryonic development of the murine pancreas and regeneration of acute pancreatitis

Introduction Re-activation of genetic programs from early development is crucial for injury-induced organ regeneration. Interestingly, differentiation potential and self-renewal capabilities of pluripotent stem cells are shared features with tissue resident stem cells, a source of organ regeneration. T-Box Transcription Factor 3 (Tbx3) has been shown to facilitate somatic reprogramming into induced pluripotent stem cells and act as a dynamic switch in activation of pluripotency, and thus stem cell renewal.

Aims Therefore, we hypothesize that Tbx3 is expressed and important during embryonic maturation of pancreatic development and favors regeneration of acute pancreatitis due to control of self-renewal capacity.

Results Using a Tbx3-Venus reporter mouse strain, we showed that Tbx3 expression is augmented at different stages during embryonic development of the pancreas and absent in adult pancreas. However, pancreas specific deletion of Tbx3 already at embryonic stage using a p48-Cre mouse line did not show any phenotypic differences of the architecture of the adult pancreas compared to their wildtype counterparts. Interestingly, induction of experimental acute pancreatitis by caerulein led to an upregulation of Tbx3 expression during the regeneration phase.

Conclusion Taken together, we observed Tbx3 expression during embryonic development and again during acute pancreatitis. This may indicate that Tbx3 favors tissue development and repair through regulation of stem cell compartments. To strengthen these initial findings, a detailed characterization throughout the regeneration of pancreatitis will shed light into the exact relevance of Tbx3.

Publikationsverlauf

Artikel online veröffentlicht:
08. September 2020