Taste buds are not derived from neural crest in mouse, chicken, and zebra fish

Our lineage tracing studies using multiple Cre mouse lines showed a concurrent labeling of abundant taste bud cells and the underlying connective tissue with a neural crest (NC) origin, warranting a further examination on the issue of whether there is an NC derivation of taste bud cells. In this study, we mapped NC cell lineages in three different models, Sox10-iCreER(T2)/tdT mouse, GFP(+) neural fold transplantation to GFPchickens, and Sox10-Cre/GFP-RFP zebrafish model. We found that in mice, Sox10-iCreER(T2) specifically labels NC cell lineages with a single dose of tamoxifen at E7.5 and that the labeled cells were widely distributed in the connective tissue of the tongue. No labeled cells were found in taste buds or the surrounding epithelium in the postnatal mice. In the GFP(+)/GFP(-) chicken chimera model, GFP(+) cells migrated extensively to the cranial region of chicken embryos ipsilateral to the surgery side but were absent in taste buds in the base of oral cavity and palate. In zebrafish, Sox10-Cre/GFP-RFP faithfully labeled known NC-derived tissues but did not label taste buds in lower jaw or the barbel. Our data, together with previous findings in axolotl, indicate that taste buds are not derived from NC cells in rodents, birds, amphibians or teleost fish.

Automated summary

Lineage tracing studies in mice, chickens, and zebrafish revealed that taste buds are not derived from neural crest cells in these species. This supports earlier findings in axolotls, indicating a lack of neural crest origin for taste buds across rodents, birds, amphibians, and teleost fish.