By Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology News –
By flipping an evolutionarily disabled genetic switch involved in vitamin A metabolism, researchers headed by a team at the National Institute of Biological Sciences, Beijing, have enabled ear tissue regeneration in mice.
The scientists, co-led by Wei Wang, PhD, and colleagues, performed a side-by-side genetic comparison between mammal species—including rabbits—that can regenerate ear tissue and those—including mice—that can’t. The team’s analyses identified a key difference in how wound-induced fibroblasts (WIF) respond following injury, and highlighted activation in regenerative animals of a specific gene, Aldh1a2, that is critical for producing vitamin A (retinoic acid; RA). The team subsequently found that administering RA externally or switching on the Aldh1a2 gene reactivated ear tissue regeneration in transgenic mice.
