3D reconstruction of structures of hatched larva and young juvenile of the larvacean Oikopleura dioica using SBF-SEM

The larvacean Oikopleura dioica is a planktonic chordate and an emerging model organism with a short life cycle of 5 days that belongs toTunicata (Urochordata), the sister clade of vertebrates. It is characterized by the rapid development of a tadpole-shaped body. Organ formation in the trunk proceeds within 7 h after the hatching of the tailbud larvae at 3 h after fertilization (hpf) and is completed at 10 hpf, giving rise to fully functional juveniles as miniature adult form. Serial block face scanning electron microscopy was used to acquire ~ 2000 serial transverse section images of a 3 hpf larva and a 10 hpf juvenile to characterize the structures and cellular composition of the trunk and organs using 3D images and movies. Germ cells were found to fuse and establish a central syncytial cell in the gonad as early as 10 hpf. Larval development gave rise to functional organs after several rounds of cell division through trunk morphogenesis. The feature would make O. dioica ideal for analyzing cellular behaviors during morphogenetic processes using live imaging. The detailed descriptions of the larvae and juveniles provided in this study can be utilized as the start and end points of organ morphogenesis in this rapidly developing organism.