A ratchet-like apical constriction drives cell ingression during the mouse gastrulation EMT.

Epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a fundamental process whereby epithelial cells acquire mesenchymal phenotypes and the ability to migrate. EMT is the hallmark of gastrulation, an evolutionarily conserved developmental process. In mammals, epiblast cells ingress at the primitive streak to form mesoderm. Cells ingress and exit the epiblast epithelial layer and the associated EMT is dynamically regulated and involves a stereotypical sequence of cell behaviors. 3D time-lapse imaging of gastrulating mouse embryos combined with cell and tissue scale data analyses revealed the asynchronous ingression of epiblast cells at the primitive streak. Ingressing cells constrict their apical surfaces in a pulsed ratchet-like fashion through asynchronous shrinkage of apical junctions. A quantitative analysis of the distribution of apical proteins revealed the anisotropic and reciprocal enrichment of members of the actomyosin network and Crumbs2 complexes, potential regulators of asynchronous shrinkage of cell junctions. Loss of function analyses demonstrated a requirement for Crumbs2 in myosin II localization and activity at apical junctions, and as a candidate regulator of actomyosin anisotropy.