Oral Presentation 46th Lorne Genome Conference 2025

Spatially charting the developing fat-tailed dunnart (114945)

Monika Mohenska 1 2 3 , Kellie Wise 1 3 , Elly D Walters 1 , Ning Liu 1 3 , Michael J Roach 1 , Owen JL Rackham 4 , Anja S Knaupp 2 , Fernando J Rossello 5 , Luciano G Martelotto 1 3 , Oliver Griffith 6 , Jose M Polo 1 2 3
  1. Adelaide Center for Epigenetics, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide
  2. Monash University, The University of Adelaide, Clayton, VIC, Australia
  3. SAiGENCI, Adelaide
  4. University of South Hampton, South Hampton
  5. Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Melbourne
  6. Macquarie University, Sydney

Mammalian development differs tremendously across the various species. Monotremes lay eggs and marsupials and eutherians develop with a placenta. A key distinction between placental mammals is the absence of an inner cell mass in blastocysts of marsupials, and their placenta has varying degrees of invasiveness. Assessing marsupial biology offers valuable insights to developmental processes and can contribute to novel medical advancements. However, despite their importance, the development of most marsupial species remains elusive. To address this, we applied several spatial transcriptomic techniques to consecutive FFPE sections of a near term dunnart embryo to capture, analyse and visualise its gene expression in 3D. Our preliminary findings highlight both evolutionary conservation and divergence between marsupial and non-marsupial mammals. This study not only establishes a foundation for future investigation of marsupials, but also paves the way for the application of cutting-edge spatial techniques on various non-model organisms. By shedding light on marsupial development, our work contributes to the broader field of evolutionary developmental biology, and offers insights for discoveries in biomedical research.