Ignacio Del Valle, Matthew D Young, Gerda Kildisiute, Olumide K Ogunbiyi, Federica Buonocore, Ian C Simcock, Eleonora Khabirova, Berta Crespo, Nadjeda Moreno, Tony Brooks, Paola Niola, Katherine Swarbrick, Jenifer P Suntharalingham, Sinead M McGlacken-Byrne, Owen J Arthurs, Sam Behjati, John C Achermann
The adrenal glands synthesize and release essential steroid hormones such as cortisol and aldosterone, but many aspects of human adrenal gland development are not well understood. Here, we combined single-cell and bulk RNA sequencing, spatial transcriptomics, IHC, and micro-focus computed tomography to investigate key aspects of adrenal development in the first 20 weeks of gestation. We demonstrate rapid adrenal growth and vascularization, with more cell division in the outer definitive zone (DZ). Steroidogenic pathways favored androgen synthesis in the central fetal zone, but DZ capacity to synthesize cortisol and aldosterone developed with time...
July 24, 2023: JCI Insight