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Regeneration in Macrostomum lignano (Platyhelminthes): cellular dynamics in the neoblast stem cell system

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Abstract

Neoblasts are potentially totipotent stem cells and the only proliferating cells in adult Platyhelminthes. We have examined the cellular dynamics of neoblasts during the posterior regeneration of Macrostomum lignano. Double-labeling of neoblasts with bromodeoxyuridine and the anti-phospho histone H3 mitosis marker has revealed a complex cellular response in the first 48 h after amputation; this response is different from that known to occur during regeneration in triclad platyhelminths and in starvation/feeding experiments in M. lignano. Mitotic activity is reduced during the first 8 h of regeneration but, at 48 h after amputation, reaches almost twice the value of control animals. The total number of S-phase cells significantly increases after 1 day of regeneration. A subpopulation of fast-cycling neoblasts surprisingly shows the same dynamics during regeneration as those in control animals. Wound healing and regeneration are accompanied by the formation of a distinct blastema. These results present new insights, at the cellular level, into the early regeneration of rhabditophoran Platyhelminthes.

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Acknowledgements

We are grateful to Gunde Rieger for critical comments on earlier drafts of the manuscript and to Peter Ladurner for stimulating discussions. We thank Professor B. Pelster, Institute of Zoology and Limnology, Innsbruck, for allowing us to use his confocal microscope.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Zoology, University of Innsbruck, Technikerstrasse 25, Innsbruck, 6020, Austria

    Katharina Theresia Nimeth, Bernhard Egger, Reinhard Rieger, Willi Salvenmoser & Robert Gschwentner

  2. Department of Genetics and General Biology, University of Salzburg, Salzburg, Austria

    Roland Peter

Authors
  1. Katharina Theresia Nimeth
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  2. Bernhard Egger
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  3. Reinhard Rieger
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  4. Willi Salvenmoser
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  5. Roland Peter
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  6. Robert Gschwentner
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Correspondence to Bernhard Egger.

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This work was supported by FWF Grant (P16618; P.I. Rieger, Innsbruck).

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Nimeth, K.T., Egger, B., Rieger, R. et al. Regeneration in Macrostomum lignano (Platyhelminthes): cellular dynamics in the neoblast stem cell system. Cell Tissue Res 327, 637–646 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00441-006-0299-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00441-006-0299-9

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