Acquisition of neural crest promoted thyroid evolution from chordate endostyle

The endostyle is an endodermal organ unique to nonvertebrate chordates except for lamprey larvae, where it serves as forerunner to the adult thyroid. Here, we examine whether the acquisition of neural crest in the vertebrate lineage played a role in the elaboration of the endostyle. CM-DiI lineage tracing reveals a neural crest contribution to the endostyle, and CRISPR-Cas9 mutagenesis of key neural crest genes causes endostyle defects including formation of a single rather than bilobed structure. RNA sequencing reveals gene profiles characteristic of embryonic neural crest cells and Schwann cell precursors in the developing endostyle. Contrasting with the prevailing view that the endostyle is an endoderm-derived organ, we propose that the acquisition of the neural crest played a critical step in promoting thyroid evolution from chordate endostyle.