Journal
STEM CELLS AND DEVELOPMENT
Volume 27, Issue 4, Pages 237-251Publisher
MARY ANN LIEBERT, INC
DOI: 10.1089/scd.2017.0142
Keywords
organoids; inner ear; hair cells; Pax2; embryonic stem cells; transcriptional reporter
Funding
- Department of Defense [W81XWH-12-1-0492]
- NIH-NIDCD core grant [P30-DC005188]
- NIH institutional training grants [T32-DC00011, T32-NS07640]
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Producing hair cells of the inner ear is the major goal of ongoing research that combines advances in developmental and stem cell biology. The recent advent of an inner ear organoid protocolresulting in three-dimensional stem cell-derived tissues resembling vestibular sensory epitheliahas sparked interest in applications such as regeneration, drug discovery, and disease modeling. In this study, we adapted this protocol for a novel mouse embryonic stem cell line with a fluorescent reporter for Pax2 expression. We used Pax2(EGFP/+) organoid formation to model otic induction, the pivotal developmental event when preplacodal tissue adopts otic fate. We found upregulation of Pax2 and activation of ERK downstream of fibroblast growth factor signaling in organoid formation as in embryonic inner ear development. Pax2 expression was evident from the EGFP reporter beginning at the vesicle formation stage and persisting through generation of the sensory epithelium. The native ventralizing signal sonic hedgehog was largely absent from the cell aggregates as otic vesicles began to form, confirming the dorsal vestibular organoid fate. Nonetheless, cochlear- or vestibular-like neurons appeared to delaminate from the derived otic vesicles and formed synaptic contacts with hair cells in the organoids. Cell lines with transcriptional reporters such as Pax2(EGFP/+) facilitate direct evaluation of morphological changes during organoid production, a major asset when establishing and validating the culture protocol.
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