PUBLICATION

Splitting of circulating red blood cells as an in vivo mechanism of erythrocyte maturation in developing zebrafish, chick and mouse embryos.

Authors
Brönnimann, D., Annese, T., Gorr, T.A., Djonov, V.
ID
ZDB-PUB-180616-2
Date
2018
Source
The Journal of experimental biology   221(Pt 15): (Journal)
Registered Authors
Keywords
Chicken, Circulation, Mouse, Red blood cells, Zebrafish
MeSH Terms
  • Animals
  • Cell Division/physiology
  • Chick Embryo/embryology*
  • Erythrocytes/cytology*
  • Erythrocytes/ultrastructure
  • Erythropoiesis/physiology*
  • Mice, Inbred C57BL/embryology*
  • Microscopy, Confocal
  • Microscopy, Electron
  • Zebrafish/embryology*
PubMed
29903841 Full text @ J. Exp. Biol.
Abstract
Nucleated circulating red blood cells (RBCs) of developing zebrafish, chick and mouse embryos can actively proliferate. While marrow- or organ-mediated erythropoiesis has been widely studied, transforming in vivo processes of circulating RBCs are under little scrutiny. We employed confocal, stereo- and electron microscopy to document the maturation of intravascular RBCs. In zebrafish embryos (32-72 h post-fertilization), RBC splitting in the caudal vein plexus follows a four-step program: (i) nuclear division with continued cytoplasmic connection between somata; (ii) dumbbell-shaped RBCs tangle at transluminal vascular pillars; (iii) elongation; and (iv) disruption of soma-to-soma connection. Dividing RBCs of chick embryos, however, retain the nucleus in one of their somata. Here, RBC splitting acts to pinch off portions of cytoplasm, organelles and ribosomes. Dumbbell-shaped primitive RBCs re-appeared as circulation constituents in mouse embryos. The splitting of circulating RBCs thus represents a biologically relevant mechanism of RBC division and maturation during early vertebrate ontogeny.
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