Syndecan 4 (Sdc4) is a cell-surface heparan sulfate proteoglycan (HSPG) that regulates gastrulation, neural tube closure and directed neural crest migration in Xenopus development. To determine whether Sdc4 participates in Wnt/PCP signaling during mouse development, we evaluated a possible interaction between a null mutation of Sdc4 and the loop-tail allele ...

The transcriptional regulatory network that controls the determination and differentiation of skeletal muscle cells in the embryo has at its core the four Myogenic Regulatory Factors (MRFs), Myf5, MyoD, Mrf4 and Myogenin. These bHLH transcription factors act by binding, as obligate heterodimers with the ubiquitously expressed E proteins, to the ...

Dipeptidyl peptidase-like protein 6 (DPP6), a member of the dipeptidyl aminopeptidase family, plays distinct roles in brain development, but its expression in embryonic Meckel's cartilage and tooth germs development is unknown. We analyzed the expression pattern of DPP6 in Meckel's cartilage and tooth germs development using in situ hybridization. DPP6 ...

Alternative forms of proinsulin mRNA with differential translational capacities and unknown significance are expressed in several developing tissues and in the adult pancreas. In the chick embryo developing heart, we observed low expression of the translationally active transcript of embryonic proinsulin (Pro1B), and predominant expression of the intron 1-unspliced variant, ...

Liver-expressed antimicrobial peptide 1 (LEAP-1) and LEAP-2 are widespread in fish and extremely important components of the host innate immune system. In this study, full-length cDNAs of LEAP-1 and LEAP-2 were cloned and sequenced from blunt snout bream, Megalobrama amblycephala. The open reading frames (ORF) of LEAP-1 and LEAP-2 genes ...

BACKGROUND: In mouse embryonic stem cells (mESCs), transcriptional silencing of numerous class I and II endogenous retroviruses (ERVs), including IAP, ETn and MMERVK10C, is dependent upon the H3K9 methyltransferase (KMTase) SETDB1/ESET and its binding partner KAP1/TRIM28. In contrast, the H3K9 KMTases G9a and GLP and HP1 proteins are dispensable for ...

Qilin is one of several genes in zebrafish whose mutation results in cystic kidney. We have now studied the role of its mouse ortholog, Cluap1, in embryonic development by generating Cluap1 knockout (Cluap1(-/-)) mice. Cluap1(-/-) embryos died mid-gestation manifesting impairment of ciliogenesis in various regions including the node and neural ...

Tbx2 and Tbx3 are two highly related members of the T-box transcription factor gene family that regulate patterning and differentiation of a number of tissue rudiments in the mouse. Both genes are partially co-expressed in the ventral diencephalon and the infundibulum; however, a functional requirement in murine pituitary development has ...

Background PPM1G is a nuclear localized serine/threonine phosphatase implicated to be a regulator of chromatin remodeling, mRNA splicing and DNA damage. However, its in vivo function is unknown. Results Here we show that ppm1g expression is highly enriched in the central nervous system during mouse and zebrafish development. ppm1g(-/-) mice ...

Transcription is an essential component of basic cellular and developmental processes. However, early embryonic development occurs in the absence of transcription and instead relies upon maternal mRNAs and proteins deposited in the egg during oocyte maturation. Although the early zebrafish embryo is competent to transcribe exogenous DNA, factors present in ...

Regulation of the Bone Morphogenetic Protein (BMP) signaling pathway is essential for the normal development of vertebrate gastrointestinal (GI) tract, but also for the differentiation of the digestive mesenchymal layer into smooth muscles and submucosal layer. Different studies demonstrated that Bapx1 (for bagpipe homeobox homolog 1) negatively regulates the BMP ...

Eukaryotic translation initiation factor 3 (eIF3) plays a central role in translation initiation and consists of five core (conserved) subunits present in both budding yeast and higher eukaryotes. Higher eukaryotic eIF3 contains additional (noncore or nonconserved) subunits of poorly defined function, including sub-unit h (eIF3h), which in zebrafish is encoded ...

The present study was designed to investigate the ontogeny and tissue distribution of somatostatin and its five receptor subtypes (SSTR1-5) mRNA expression in embryonic chicken (Gallus gallus). Brain, gonads (male), intestine, kidney, liver, muscle, stomach and yolk sac membrane (YSM) of chicken embryos on the embryonic (E) ages of 10, ...

Aim:To investigate the embryotoxicity of dihydroartemisinin (DHA), the main active metabolite of artemisinin, in zebrafish, and explore the corresponding mechanisms.Methods:The embryos of wild type and TG (flk1:GFP) transgenic zebrafish were exposed to DHA. Developmental phenotypes of the embryos were observed. Development of blood vessels was directly observed in living embryos ...

The primary axis of cnidarians runs from the oral pole to the apical tuft and defines the major body axis of both the planula larva and adult polyp. In the anthozoan cnidarian Nematostella vectensis, the primary oral-aboral (O-Ab) axis first develops during the early embryonic stage. Here, we present evidence ...

Mesoderm is formed during gastrulation. This process takes place at the blastopore in lower vertebrates and in the primitive streak (streak) in amniotes. The evolutionary relationship between the blastopore and the streak is unresolved, and the morphogenetic and molecular changes leading to this shift in mesoderm formation during early amniote ...

Trans-ε-viniferin is a naturally occurring polyphenol belonging to the stilbenoid family that has been isolated from Vitis amurensis, one of the most common wild grapes in Asia. We investigated the effects of trans-ε-viniferin on in vitro maturation (IVM) and developmental competence after in vitro fertilization (IVF) or parthenogenesis (PA). We ...

Background: Retinoic acid (RA) signaling plays a critical role in vertebrate development. Transcriptional reporters of RA signaling in zebrafish, thus far, have not reflected the broader availability of embryonic RA, necessitating additional tools to enhance our understanding of the spatial and temporal activity of RA signaling in vivo. Results: We ...

The node triggers formation of the left-right axis in mouse embryos by establishing local asymmetry of Nodal and Cerl2 expression. We found that Wnt3 is expressed in perinodal crown cells preferentially on the left side. The enhancer responsible for Wnt3 expression was identified and found to be regulated by Foxa2 ...

Previously we identified anterior localization of hunchback (Aphb) mRNA in oocytes and early embryos of the parthenogenetic and viviparous pea aphid Acyrthosiphon pisum, suggesting that the breaking of anterior asymmetry in the oocytes leads to the formation of the anterior axis in embryos. In order to study posterior development in ...

Ketamine, a dissociative anesthetic, is a noncompetitive antagonist of N-methyl-D-aspartate-type glutamate receptors. In rodents and non-human primates as well as in zebrafish embryos, ketamine has been shown to be neurotoxic. In cyclic female rats, ketamine has been shown to decrease serum estradiol-17β (E2) levels. E2 plays critical roles in neurodevelopment ...

Sodium-hydrogen exchangers (NHE) of the Slc9 gene family are the major regulators of intracellular pH against acidosis in mammalian cells. Of five plasma membrane NHE isoforms, mouse oocytes and preimplantation embryos express mRNAs encoding NHE1 (SLC9A1), NHE3 (SLC9A3), and NHE4 (SLC9A4), with higher mRNA levels for each in oocytes through ...

Luman (also known as LZIP and CREB3) is a basic leucine zipper transcription factor of the cAMP response element-binding protein/activating transcription factor gene family. Although Luman had specific roles near termination of Drosophila embryogenesis, the physiological functions of Luman in female mammals have apparently not been reported. Therefore, our objective ...

Zyxin is a cytoskeletal protein that controls cell movements by regulating actin filaments assembly, but which can also modulate gene expression owing to its interactions with proteins involved in signaling cascades. Therefore, identification of proteins that interact with Zyxin in embryonic cells is a promising way to unravel mechanisms responsible ...

Linoleic acid (LA; n-6, 18:2) is the most abundant polyunsaturated fatty acid in the ovarian follicular fluid and is known to inhibit oocyte maturation and its subsequent development. In the present study, we investigated how its effects on cumulus cell expansion, oocyte nuclear maturation, and blastocyst development are altered by ...

The first mammalian cell lineage commitment is the formation of the trophectoderm (TE) and the inner cell mass (ICM) lineages during preimplantation development. Proper development of TE and ICM lineages is dependent upon establishment of specific transcriptional programs. However, epigenetic mechanisms that functionally contribute to establish TE and ICM-specific transcriptional ...

The signal transduction pathway governed by the phytohormone abscisic acid (ABA) regulates not only abiotic stress responses but also the early developmental programs, such as seed dormancy, germination, and seedling growth, in response to environmental signals. Optimal plant growth and development depend on the integration of environmental stimuli and intrinsic ...

Nonmuscle myosin II (NM II) is the name given to the multi-subunit protein product of three genes (myh9, myh10 and myh14) encoding different nonmuscle myosin heavy chains. The three NM II isoforms share a very similar molecular structure and play important roles in a variety of fundamental biological processes. NM ...

Reelin (RELN) is a large glycoprotein that plays critical roles during and after neuronal development. In a previous study utilizing developing zebrafish, the RELN ortholog was in a subset of genes associated with neuronal function that was altered following exposure to 100 ppb Pb at 72 hours post-fertilization (hpf). Although ...

Background/Aims: Water channels, also named aquaporins (AQPs), play crucial roles in cellular water homeostasis. Methods: RT-PCR indicated the mRNA expression of AQPs 1-5, 7, 9, and 11-12, but not AQPs 0, 6, 8, and 10 in the 2∼8-cell stage human embryos. AQP3 and AQP7 were further analyzed for their mRNA ...

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are ubiquitous in the environment as components of fossil fuels and by-products of combustion. These multi-ring chemicals differentially activate the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) in a structurally dependent manner, and induce toxicity via both AHR-dependent and-independent mechanisms. PAH exposure is known to induce developmental malformations in ...

BACKGROUND: Phosphatase of regenerating liver (PRL) family is classified as class IVa of protein tyrosine phosphatase (PTP4A) that removes phosphate groups from phosphorylated tyrosine residues on proteins. PRL phosphatases have been implicated in a number of tumorigenesis and metastasis processes and are highly conserved. However, the understanding of PRL expression ...

PROBLEM: The type I interferon (IFN), IFN-tau (τ), is the primary embryonic signal for pregnancy maintenance in ruminants. This study determined the effects of heat shock upon IFN-τ (IFNT) gene expression by bovine blastocysts in vitro. METHOD OF STUDY: In vitro-produced blastocyst-stage embryos were exposed to 42°C for 4 hr, and ...

The posterior lateral line primordium (PLLp) migrates caudally and periodically deposits neuromasts. Coupled, but mutually inhibitory, Wnt-FGF signaling systems regulate proto-neuromast formation in the PLLp: FGF ligands expressed in response to Wnt signaling activate FGF receptors and initiate proto-neuromast formation. FGF receptor signaling, in turn, inhibits Wnt signaling. However, mechanisms ...

We have generated an inducible system to control the timing of transgene expression in zebrafish and chick. An estrogen receptor variant (ERT2) fused to the GAL4 transcriptional activator rapidly and robustly activates transcription within 3 hours of treatment with the drug 4-hydroxy-tamoxifen (4-OHT) in tissue culture and transgenic zebrafish. We ...

Reciprocal inductive interactions between the embryonic and extraembryonic tissues establish the anterior-posterior (AP) axis of the early mouse embryo. The anterior visceral endoderm (AVE) signaling center emerges at the distal tip of the embryo at embryonic day 5.5 and translocates to the prospective anterior side of the embryo. The process ...

The objective of this study was to investigate the role of the POU family transcription factor, Oct-4, in the early development of porcine embryos. We attempted Oct-4 downregulation of porcine early embryos by RNA interference, and evaluated Oct-4 suppression of developmental competencies and gene transcripts in porcine embryos. Injection of ...

Tris(1-chloro-2-propyl) phosphate (TCPP) and tris(1,3-dichloro-2-propyl) phosphate (TDCPP) are organic flame retardants detected in the environment and biota for which toxicological data for avian species are limited. In this study, domestic chicken eggs were injected with TCPP or TDCPP (maximum dose = 51600 and 45000 ng/g egg, respectively) to determine dose-dependent ...

Summary Somatic cell nuclear transfer can be used to produce embryonic stem (ES) cells, cloned animals, and can even increase the population size of endangered animals. However, the application of this technique is limited by the low developmental rate of cloned embryos, a situation that may result from abnormal expression ...

Summary In vitro fertilized (IVF) human embryos have a high incidence of developmental arrest before the blastocyst stage, therefore characterization of the molecular mechanisms that regulate embryo development is urgently required. Post-transcriptional control by microRNAs (miRNAs) is one of the most investigated RNA control mechanisms, and is hypothesized to be ...

Biological functions of hyaluronan (HA) depend on its molecular size. Small size HA are known to regulate cell proliferation, however the expression of HA synthases (HAS) and hyaluronidase (HYAL2) and their role during early embryo development have not been previously identified. In this paper we have shown by immunostaining that ...

The vitamin A metabolite retinoic acid (RA) provides patterning information during vertebrate embryogenesis, but the mechanism through which RA influences limb development is unclear. During patterning of the limb proximodistal axis (upper limb to digits), avian studies suggest that a proximal RA signal generated in the trunk antagonizes a distal ...

The ciliary margin (CM) develops in the peripheral retina and gives rise to the iris and the ciliary body. The Wnt/β-catenin signalling pathway has been implicated in ciliary margin development. Here, we tested the hypothesis that in the developing mouse retina Foxg1 is responsible for suppressing the Wnt/β-catenin pathway and ...

Tendon injuries occur frequently in horses and have a poor capacity to regenerate which leads to high re-injury rates. Equine embryo-derived stem cells (ESCs) survive in high numbers in the injured horse tendon and we hypothesized that they differentiate into tenocytes in vivo. Immunocytochemistry revealed that in the injured horse ...

Proteoglycans (PGs) modulate numerous signaling pathways during development through binding of their glycosaminoglycan (GAG) side chains to various signaling molecules including fibroblast growth factors (FGFs). A majority of PGs possess two or more GAG side chains suggesting that GAG multivalency is imperative for biological functions in vivo. However, only a ...

Many reptiles, including the red-eared slider turtle (Trachemys scripta), possess a temperature-dependent sex determination (TSD) mechanism where the temperature at which the developing embryos are incubated dictates the gonadal sex of the animal. A number of mammalian gene orthologues have been identified in the sex determination/differentiation cascade of reptiles with ...

High and low nuclear levels of the conserved transcriptional regulator β-catenin distinguish multiple sister cell fates to specify endoderm and mesoderm during early embryogenesis in a chordate embryo.

The aberrant expression of imprinted genes induces parthenogenetic fetal and placental dysplasia, thus leading to failures in embryonic development. Igf2 and H19 are co-expressed in endoderm and mesoderm-derived tissues and play an important role in normal embryo and extraembryonic development. In this study, the expression and methylation of Igf2/H19 in ...

Perfluoroundecanoic acid (PFUdA) is one of the most highly detected perfluoroalkyl compounds in wild bird tissues and eggs. Although PFUdA does not affect hatching success, many PFCs are known to impair post-hatch development and survival. Here we use microarrays to survey the transcriptional response of cultured chicken embryonic hepatocytes (CEH) ...

We describe a protocol for microinjection of embryos for an emerging model system, the cnidarian sea anemone, Nematostella vectensis. In addition, we provide protocols for carrying out overexpression and knockdown of gene function through microinjection of in vitro-translated mRNAs or gene-specific oligonucleotide morpholinos (MOs), respectively. Our approach is simple, and ...