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Lan Y, Wu Z, Liu H, Jiang R. Lineage-specific requirements of Alx4 function in craniofacial and hair development. Dev Dyn 2024; 253:940-948. [PMID: 38481039 PMCID: PMC11393181 DOI: 10.1002/dvdy.705] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2024] [Revised: 02/28/2024] [Accepted: 02/28/2024] [Indexed: 09/15/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Disruption of ALX4 causes autosomal dominant parietal foramina and autosomal recessive frontonasal dysplasia with alopecia, but the mechanisms involving ALX4 in craniofacial and other developmental processes are not well understood. Although mice carrying distinct mutations in Alx4 have been previously reported, the perinatal lethality of homozygous mutants together with dynamic patterns of Alx4 expression in multiple tissues have hindered systematic elucidation of the cellular and molecular mechanisms involving Alx4 in organogenesis and disease pathogenesis. RESULTS We report generation of Alx4f/f conditional mice and show that tissue-specific Cre-mediated inactivation of Alx4 in cranial neural crest and limb bud mesenchyme, respectively, recapitulated craniofacial and limb developmental defects as found in Alx4-null mice but without affecting postnatal survival. While Alx4-null mice that survive postnatally exhibited dorsal alopecia, mice lacking Alx4 function in the neural crest lineage exhibited a highly restricted region of hair loss over the anterior skull whereas mice lacking Alx4 in the cranial mesoderm lineage exhibited normal hair development, suggesting that Alx4 plays partly redundant roles in multiple cell lineages during hair follicle development. CONCLUSION The Alx4f/f mice provide a valuable resource for systematic investigation of cell type- and stage-specific function of ALX family transcription factors in development and disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yu Lan
- Division of Plastic Surgery, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
- Division of Developmental Biology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
- Departments of Pediatrics and Surgery, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
| | - Zhaoming Wu
- Division of Plastic Surgery, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
- Current address: Faculty of Dentistry, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR
| | - Han Liu
- Division of Plastic Surgery, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
| | - Rulang Jiang
- Division of Plastic Surgery, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
- Division of Developmental Biology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
- Departments of Pediatrics and Surgery, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USA
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2
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Chatzi D, Kyriakoudi SA, Dermitzakis I, Manthou ME, Meditskou S, Theotokis P. Clinical and Genetic Correlation in Neurocristopathies: Bridging a Precision Medicine Gap. J Clin Med 2024; 13:2223. [PMID: 38673496 PMCID: PMC11050951 DOI: 10.3390/jcm13082223] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2024] [Revised: 04/09/2024] [Accepted: 04/10/2024] [Indexed: 04/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Neurocristopathies (NCPs) encompass a spectrum of disorders arising from issues during the formation and migration of neural crest cells (NCCs). NCCs undergo epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and upon key developmental gene deregulation, fetuses and neonates are prone to exhibit diverse manifestations depending on the affected area. These conditions are generally rare and often have a genetic basis, with many following Mendelian inheritance patterns, thus making them perfect candidates for precision medicine. Examples include cranial NCPs, like Goldenhar syndrome and Axenfeld-Rieger syndrome; cardiac-vagal NCPs, such as DiGeorge syndrome; truncal NCPs, like congenital central hypoventilation syndrome and Waardenburg syndrome; and enteric NCPs, such as Hirschsprung disease. Additionally, NCCs' migratory and differentiating nature makes their derivatives prone to tumors, with various cancer types categorized based on their NCC origin. Representative examples include schwannomas and pheochromocytomas. This review summarizes current knowledge of diseases arising from defects in NCCs' specification and highlights the potential of precision medicine to remedy a clinical phenotype by targeting the genotype, particularly important given that those affected are primarily infants and young children.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | - Paschalis Theotokis
- Department of Histology-Embryology, School of Medicine, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece; (D.C.); (S.A.K.); (I.D.); (M.E.M.); (S.M.)
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3
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Schneider RF, Gunter HM, Salewski I, Woltering JM, Meyer A. Growth dynamics and molecular bases of evolutionary novel jaw extensions in halfbeaks and needlefishes (Beloniformes). Mol Ecol 2023; 32:5798-5811. [PMID: 37750351 DOI: 10.1111/mec.17143] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2023] [Revised: 08/17/2023] [Accepted: 09/05/2023] [Indexed: 09/27/2023]
Abstract
Evolutionary novelties-derived traits without clear homology found in the ancestors of a lineage-may promote ecological specialization and facilitate adaptive radiations. Examples for such novelties include the wings of bats, pharyngeal jaws of cichlids and flowers of angiosperms. Belonoid fishes (flying fishes, halfbeaks and needlefishes) feature an astonishing diversity of extremely elongated jaw phenotypes with undetermined evolutionary origins. We investigate the development of elongated jaws in a halfbeak (Dermogenys pusilla) and a needlefish (Xenentodon cancila) using morphometrics, transcriptomics and in situ hybridization. We confirm that these fishes' elongated jaws are composed of distinct base and novel 'extension' portions. These extensions are morphologically unique to belonoids, and we describe the growth dynamics of both bases and extensions throughout early development in both studied species. From transcriptomic profiling, we deduce that jaw extension outgrowth is guided by populations of multipotent cells originating from the anterior tip of the dentary. These cells are shielded from differentiation, but proliferate and migrate anteriorly during the extension's allometric growth phase. Cells left behind at the tip leave the shielded zone and undergo differentiation into osteoblast-like cells, which deposit extracellular matrix with both bone and cartilage characteristics that mineralizes and thereby provides rigidity. Such bone has characteristics akin to histological observations on the elongated 'kype' process on lower jaws of male salmon, which may hint at common conserved regulatory underpinnings. Future studies will evaluate the molecular pathways that govern the anterior migration and proliferation of these multipotent cells underlying the belonoids' evolutionary novel jaw extensions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ralf F Schneider
- Lehrstuhl für Zoologie und Evolutionsbiologie, Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany
- Department of Marine Ecology, GEOMAR, Kiel, Germany
| | - Helen M Gunter
- Lehrstuhl für Zoologie und Evolutionsbiologie, Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany
| | - Inken Salewski
- Lehrstuhl für Zoologie und Evolutionsbiologie, Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany
| | - Joost M Woltering
- Lehrstuhl für Zoologie und Evolutionsbiologie, Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany
| | - Axel Meyer
- Lehrstuhl für Zoologie und Evolutionsbiologie, Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany
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4
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Zhang C, Wu S, Chen E, Yu L, Wang J, Wu M. ALX1-transcribed LncRNA AC132217.4 promotes osteogenesis and bone healing via IGF-AKT signaling in mesenchymal stem cells. Cell Mol Life Sci 2022; 79:328. [PMID: 35639207 PMCID: PMC11073114 DOI: 10.1007/s00018-022-04338-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2022] [Revised: 04/23/2022] [Accepted: 04/29/2022] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
The osteogenic potential of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) is critical for bone formation and regeneration. A high non-/delayed-union rate of fracture healing still occurs in specific populations, implying an urgent need to discover novel targets for promoting osteogenesis and bone regeneration. Long non-coding (lnc)RNAs are emerging regulators of multiple physiological processes, including osteogenesis. Based on differential expression analysis of RNA sequencing data, we found that lncRNA AC132217.4, a 3'UTR-overlapping lncRNA of insulin growth factor 2 (IGF2), was highly induced during osteogenic differentiation of BMSCs. Afterward, both gain-of-function and loss-of-function experiments proved that AC132217.4 promotes osteoblast development from BMSCs. As for its molecular mechanism, we found that AC132217.4 binds with IGF2 mRNA to regulate its expression and downstream AKT activation to control osteoblast maturation and function. Furthermore, we identified two splicing factors, splicing component 35 KDa (SC35) and heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein A1 (HNRNPA1), which regulate the biogenesis of AC132217.4 at the post-transcriptional level. We also identified a transcription factor, ALX1, which regulates AC132217.7 expression at the transcriptional level to promote osteogenesis. Importantly, in-vivo over-expression of AC132217.4 essentially promotes the bone healing process in a murine tibial drill-hole model. Our study demonstrates that lncRNA AC132217.4 is a novel anabolic regulator of BMSC osteogenesis and could be a plausible therapeutic target for improving bone regeneration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cui Zhang
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, College of Life Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
- Key Laboratory of Integrated Oncology and Intelligent Medicine of Zhejiang Province, Affiliated Hangzhou First People's Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China
| | - Shali Wu
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, College of Life Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Erman Chen
- Department of Orthopedics, Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China
| | - Luyang Yu
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, College of Life Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Jinfu Wang
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, College of Life Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China.
| | - Mengrui Wu
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, College of Life Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China.
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5
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Yoon B, Yeung P, Santistevan N, Bluhm LE, Kawasaki K, Kueper J, Dubielzig R, VanOudenhove J, Cotney J, Liao EC, Grinblat Y. Zebrafish models of alx-linked frontonasal dysplasia reveal a role for Alx1 and Alx3 in the anterior segment and vasculature of the developing eye. Biol Open 2022; 11:bio059189. [PMID: 35142342 PMCID: PMC9167625 DOI: 10.1242/bio.059189] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2022] [Accepted: 01/28/2022] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The cellular and genetic mechanisms that coordinate formation of facial sensory structures with surrounding skeletal and soft tissue elements remain poorly understood. Alx1, a homeobox transcription factor, is a key regulator of midfacial morphogenesis. ALX1 mutations in humans are linked to severe congenital anomalies of the facial skeleton (frontonasal dysplasia, FND) with malformation or absence of eyes and orbital contents (micro- and anophthalmia). Zebrafish with loss-of-function alx1 mutations develop with craniofacial and ocular defects of variable penetrance, likely due to compensatory upregulation in expression of a paralogous gene, alx3. Here we show that zebrafish alx1;alx3 mutants develop with highly penetrant cranial and ocular defects that resemble human ALX1-linked FND. alx1 and alx3 are expressed in anterior cranial neural crest (aCNC), which gives rise to the anterior neurocranium (ANC), anterior segment structures of the eye and vascular pericytes. Consistent with a functional requirement for alx genes in aCNC, alx1; alx3 mutants develop with nearly absent ANC and grossly aberrant hyaloid vasculature and ocular anterior segment, but normal retina. In vivo lineage labeling identified a requirement for alx1 and alx3 during aCNC migration, and transcriptomic analysis suggested oxidative stress response as a key target mechanism of this function. Oxidative stress is a hallmark of fetal alcohol toxicity, and we found increased penetrance of facial and ocular malformations in alx1 mutants exposed to ethanol, consistent with a protective role for alx1 against ethanol toxicity. Collectively, these data demonstrate a conserved role for zebrafish alx genes in controlling ocular and facial development, and a novel role in protecting these key midfacial structures from ethanol toxicity during embryogenesis. These data also reveal novel roles for alx genes in ocular anterior segment formation and vascular development and suggest that retinal deficits in alx mutants may be secondary to aberrant ocular vascularization and anterior segment defects. This study establishes robust zebrafish models for interrogating conserved genetic mechanisms that coordinate facial and ocular development, and for exploring gene--environment interactions relevant to fetal alcohol syndrome.
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Affiliation(s)
- Baul Yoon
- Departments of Integrative Biology and Neuroscience, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706, USA
- Genetics Ph.D. Training Program, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706, USA
| | - Pan Yeung
- Center for Regenerative Medicine, Department of Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, and Shriners Hospital for Children, Boston, 02114, USA
| | - Nicholas Santistevan
- Departments of Integrative Biology and Neuroscience, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706, USA
- Genetics Ph.D. Training Program, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706, USA
| | - Lauren E. Bluhm
- Departments of Integrative Biology and Neuroscience, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706, USA
| | - Kenta Kawasaki
- Center for Regenerative Medicine, Department of Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, and Shriners Hospital for Children, Boston, 02114, USA
| | - Janina Kueper
- Center for Regenerative Medicine, Department of Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, and Shriners Hospital for Children, Boston, 02114, USA
- Institute of Human Genetics, University of Bonn, Venusberg-Campus 1, 53127 Bonn, Germany
| | - Richard Dubielzig
- Comparative Ocular Pathology Laboratory of Wisconsin (COPLOW), University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706, USA
| | - Jennifer VanOudenhove
- University of Connecticut School of Medicine, Department of Genetics and Genome Sciences, Farmington, CT 06030, USA
| | - Justin Cotney
- University of Connecticut School of Medicine, Department of Genetics and Genome Sciences, Farmington, CT 06030, USA
| | - Eric C. Liao
- Center for Regenerative Medicine, Department of Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, and Shriners Hospital for Children, Boston, 02114, USA
| | - Yevgenya Grinblat
- Departments of Integrative Biology and Neuroscience, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706, USA
- Genetics Ph.D. Training Program, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706, USA
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6
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Fox SC, Widen SA, Asai-Coakwell M, Havrylov S, Benson M, Prichard LB, Baddam P, Graf D, Lehmann OJ, Waskiewicz AJ. BMP3 is a novel locus involved in the causality of ocular coloboma. Hum Genet 2022; 141:1385-1407. [PMID: 35089417 DOI: 10.1007/s00439-022-02430-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2021] [Accepted: 01/04/2022] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Coloboma, a congenital disorder characterized by gaps in ocular tissues, is caused when the choroid fissure fails to close during embryonic development. Several loci have been associated with coloboma, but these represent less than 40% of those that are involved with this disease. Here, we describe a novel coloboma-causing locus, BMP3. Whole exome sequencing and Sanger sequencing of patients with coloboma identified three variants in BMP3, two of which are predicted to be disease causing. Consistent with this, bmp3 mutant zebrafish have aberrant fissure closure. bmp3 is expressed in the ventral head mesenchyme and regulates phosphorylated Smad3 in a population of cells adjacent to the choroid fissure. Furthermore, mutations in bmp3 sensitize embryos to Smad3 inhibitor treatment resulting in open choroid fissures. Micro CT scans and Alcian blue staining of zebrafish demonstrate that mutations in bmp3 cause midface hypoplasia, suggesting that bmp3 regulates cranial neural crest cells. Consistent with this, we see active Smad3 in a population of periocular neural crest cells, and bmp3 mutant zebrafish have reduced neural crest cells in the choroid fissure. Taken together, these data suggest that Bmp3 controls Smad3 phosphorylation in neural crest cells to regulate early craniofacial and ocular development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sabrina C Fox
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta, 11455 Saskatchewan Drive, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2E9, Canada.,Women and Children's Health Research Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Sonya A Widen
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta, 11455 Saskatchewan Drive, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2E9, Canada.,Vienna BioCenter, Institute of Molecular Biotechnology of the Austrian Academy of Sciences (IMBA), Vienna, Austria.,Women and Children's Health Research Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Mika Asai-Coakwell
- Department of Animal and Poultry and Animal Science, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada.,Department of Ophthalmology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Serhiy Havrylov
- Department of Medical Genetics, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada.,Department of Ophthalmology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Matthew Benson
- Department of Medical Genetics, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada.,Department of Ophthalmology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Lisa B Prichard
- Department of Biological Sciences, MacEwan University, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Pranidhi Baddam
- Department of Dentistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Daniel Graf
- Department of Medical Genetics, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada.,Department of Dentistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Ordan J Lehmann
- Women and Children's Health Research Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada.,Department of Medical Genetics, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada.,Department of Ophthalmology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Andrew J Waskiewicz
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta, 11455 Saskatchewan Drive, Edmonton, AB, T6G 2E9, Canada. .,Women and Children's Health Research Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada.
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7
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Iyyanar PPR, Wu Z, Lan Y, Hu YC, Jiang R. Alx1 Deficient Mice Recapitulate Craniofacial Phenotype and Reveal Developmental Basis of ALX1-Related Frontonasal Dysplasia. Front Cell Dev Biol 2022; 10:777887. [PMID: 35127681 PMCID: PMC8815032 DOI: 10.3389/fcell.2022.777887] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/16/2021] [Accepted: 01/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Loss of ALX1 function causes the frontonasal dysplasia syndrome FND3, characterized by severe facial clefting and microphthalmia. Whereas the laboratory mouse has been the preeminent animal model for studying developmental mechanisms of human craniofacial birth defects, the roles of ALX1 in mouse frontonasal development have not been well characterized because the only previously reported Alx1 mutant mouse line exhibited acrania due to a genetic background-dependent failure of cranial neural tube closure. Using CRISPR/Cas9-mediated genome editing, we have generated an Alx1-deletion mouse model that recapitulates the FND craniofacial malformations, including median orofacial clefting and disruption of development of the eyes and alae nasi. In situ hybridization analysis showed that Alx1 is strongly expressed in frontonasal neural crest cells that give rise to periocular and frontonasal mesenchyme. Alx1del/del embryos exhibited increased apoptosis of periocular mesenchyme and decreased expression of ocular developmental regulators Pitx2 and Lmxb1 in the periocular mesenchyme, followed by defective optic stalk morphogenesis. Moreover, Alx1del/del embryos exhibited disruption of frontonasal mesenchyme identity, with loss of expression of Pax7 and concomitant ectopic expression of the jaw mesenchyme regulators Lhx6 and Lhx8 in the developing lateral nasal processes. The function of ALX1 in patterning the frontonasal mesenchyme is partly complemented by ALX4, a paralogous ALX family transcription factor whose loss-of-function causes a milder and distinctive FND. Together, these data uncover previously unknown roles of ALX1 in periocular mesenchyme development and frontonasal mesenchyme patterning, providing novel insights into the pathogenic mechanisms of ALX1-related FND.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paul P. R. Iyyanar
- Division of Developmental Biology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, United States
| | - Zhaoming Wu
- Division of Developmental Biology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, United States
| | - Yu Lan
- Division of Developmental Biology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, United States
- Division of Plastic Surgery, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, United States
- Departments of Pediatrics and Surgery, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH, United States
| | - Yueh-Chiang Hu
- Division of Developmental Biology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, United States
- Departments of Pediatrics and Surgery, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH, United States
| | - Rulang Jiang
- Division of Developmental Biology, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, United States
- Division of Plastic Surgery, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, United States
- Departments of Pediatrics and Surgery, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH, United States
- *Correspondence: Rulang Jiang,
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8
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Guerrero-Santoro J, Khor JM, Açıkbaş AH, Jaynes JB, Ettensohn CA. Analysis of the DNA-binding properties of Alx1, an evolutionarily conserved regulator of skeletogenesis in echinoderms. J Biol Chem 2021; 297:100901. [PMID: 34157281 PMCID: PMC8319359 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2021.100901] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2020] [Revised: 06/09/2021] [Accepted: 06/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Alx1, a homeodomain-containing transcription factor, is a highly conserved regulator of skeletogenesis in echinoderms. In sea urchins, Alx1 plays a central role in the differentiation of embryonic primary mesenchyme cells (PMCs) and positively regulates the transcription of most biomineralization genes expressed by these cells. The alx1 gene arose via duplication and acquired a skeletogenic function distinct from its paralog (alx4) through the exonization of a 41–amino acid motif (the D2 domain). Alx1 and Alx4 contain glutamine-50 paired-type homeodomains, which interact preferentially with palindromic binding sites in vitro. Chromatin immunoprecipitation sequencing (ChIP-seq) studies have shown, however, that Alx1 binds both to palindromic and half sites in vivo. To address this apparent discrepancy and explore the function of the D2 domain, we used an endogenous cis-regulatory module associated with Sp-mtmmpb, a gene that encodes a PMC-specific metalloprotease, to analyze the DNA-binding properties of Alx1. We find that Alx1 forms dimeric complexes on TAAT-containing half sites by a mechanism distinct from the well-known mechanism of dimerization on palindromic sites. We used transgenic reporter assays to analyze the functional roles of half sites in vivo and demonstrate that two sites with partially redundant functions are essential for the PMC-specific activity of the Sp-mtmmpb cis-regulatory module. Finally, we show that the D2 domain influences the DNA-binding properties of Alx1 in vitro, suggesting that the exonization of this motif may have facilitated the acquisition of new transcriptional targets and consequently a novel developmental function.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Jian Ming Khor
- Department of Biological Sciences, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Ayşe Haruka Açıkbaş
- Department of Biological Sciences, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - James B Jaynes
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Charles A Ettensohn
- Department of Biological Sciences, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.
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9
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Mitchell JM, Sucharov J, Pulvino AT, Brooks EP, Gillen AE, Nichols JT. The alx3 gene shapes the zebrafish neurocranium by regulating frontonasal neural crest cell differentiation timing. Development 2021; 148:dev197483. [PMID: 33741714 PMCID: PMC8077506 DOI: 10.1242/dev.197483] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2020] [Accepted: 03/12/2021] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
During craniofacial development, different populations of cartilage- and bone-forming cells develop in precise locations in the head. Most of these cells are derived from pluripotent cranial neural crest cells and differentiate with distinct developmental timing and cellular morphologies. The mechanisms that divide neural crest cells into discrete populations are not fully understood. Here, we use single-cell RNA sequencing to transcriptomically define different populations of cranial neural crest cells. We discovered that the gene family encoding the Alx transcription factors is enriched in the frontonasal population of neural crest cells. Genetic mutant analyses indicate that alx3 functions to regulate the distinct differentiation timing and cellular morphologies among frontonasal neural crest cell subpopulations. This study furthers our understanding of how genes controlling developmental timing shape craniofacial skeletal elements.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennyfer M. Mitchell
- Department of Craniofacial Biology, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO 80045, USA
| | - Juliana Sucharov
- Department of Craniofacial Biology, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO 80045, USA
| | - Anthony T. Pulvino
- Department of Craniofacial Biology, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO 80045, USA
| | - Elliott P. Brooks
- Department of Craniofacial Biology, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO 80045, USA
| | - Austin E. Gillen
- RNA Bioscience Initiative, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO 80045, USA
- Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO 80045, USA
| | - James T. Nichols
- Department of Craniofacial Biology, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO 80045, USA
- RNA Bioscience Initiative, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO 80045, USA
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10
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Harding P, Cunha DL, Moosajee M. Animal and cellular models of microphthalmia. THERAPEUTIC ADVANCES IN RARE DISEASE 2021; 2:2633004021997447. [PMID: 37181112 PMCID: PMC10032472 DOI: 10.1177/2633004021997447] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2021] [Accepted: 02/02/2021] [Indexed: 05/16/2023]
Abstract
Microphthalmia is a rare developmental eye disorder affecting 1 in 7000 births. It is defined as a small (axial length ⩾2 standard deviations below the age-adjusted mean) underdeveloped eye, caused by disruption of ocular development through genetic or environmental factors in the first trimester of pregnancy. Clinical phenotypic heterogeneity exists amongst patients with varying levels of severity, and associated ocular and systemic features. Up to 11% of blind children are reported to have microphthalmia, yet currently no treatments are available. By identifying the aetiology of microphthalmia and understanding how the mechanisms of eye development are disrupted, we can gain a better understanding of the pathogenesis. Animal models, mainly mouse, zebrafish and Xenopus, have provided extensive information on the genetic regulation of oculogenesis, and how perturbation of these pathways leads to microphthalmia. However, differences exist between species, hence cellular models, such as patient-derived induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) optic vesicles, are now being used to provide greater insights into the human disease process. Progress in 3D cellular modelling techniques has enhanced the ability of researchers to study interactions of different cell types during eye development. Through improved molecular knowledge of microphthalmia, preventative or postnatal therapies may be developed, together with establishing genotype-phenotype correlations in order to provide patients with the appropriate prognosis, multidisciplinary care and informed genetic counselling. This review summarises some key discoveries from animal and cellular models of microphthalmia and discusses how innovative new models can be used to further our understanding in the future. Plain language summary Animal and Cellular Models of the Eye Disorder, Microphthalmia (Small Eye) Microphthalmia, meaning a small, underdeveloped eye, is a rare disorder that children are born with. Genetic changes or variations in the environment during the first 3 months of pregnancy can disrupt early development of the eye, resulting in microphthalmia. Up to 11% of blind children have microphthalmia, yet currently no treatments are available. By understanding the genes necessary for eye development, we can determine how disruption by genetic changes or environmental factors can cause this condition. This helps us understand why microphthalmia occurs, and ensure patients are provided with the appropriate clinical care and genetic counselling advice. Additionally, by understanding the causes of microphthalmia, researchers can develop treatments to prevent or reduce the severity of this condition. Animal models, particularly mice, zebrafish and frogs, which can also develop small eyes due to the same genetic/environmental changes, have helped us understand the genes which are important for eye development and can cause birth eye defects when disrupted. Studying a patient's own cells grown in the laboratory can further help researchers understand how changes in genes affect their function. Both animal and cellular models can be used to develop and test new drugs, which could provide treatment options for patients living with microphthalmia. This review summarises the key discoveries from animal and cellular models of microphthalmia and discusses how innovative new models can be used to further our understanding in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Mariya Moosajee
- UCL Institute of Ophthalmology, 11-43 Bath
Street, London, EC1V 9EL, UK
- Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust,
London, UK
- Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children NHS
Foundation Trust, London, UK
- The Francis Crick Institute, London, UK
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11
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Vanzo RJ, Prasad A, Staunch L, Hensel CH, Serrano MA, Wassman ER, Kaplun A, Grandin T, Boles RG. The Temple Grandin Genome: Comprehensive Analysis in a Scientist with High-Functioning Autism. J Pers Med 2020; 11:21. [PMID: 33383702 PMCID: PMC7824360 DOI: 10.3390/jpm11010021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/13/2020] [Revised: 12/23/2020] [Accepted: 12/24/2020] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a heterogeneous condition with a complex genetic etiology. The objective of this study is to identify the complex genetic factors that underlie the ASD phenotype and other clinical features of Professor Temple Grandin, an animal scientist and woman with high-functioning ASD. Identifying the underlying genetic cause for ASD can impact medical management, personalize services and treatment, and uncover other medical risks that are associated with the genetic diagnosis. Prof. Grandin underwent chromosomal microarray analysis, whole exome sequencing, and whole genome sequencing, as well as a comprehensive clinical and family history intake. The raw data were analyzed in order to identify possible genotype-phenotype correlations. Genetic testing identified variants in three genes (SHANK2, ALX1, and RELN) that are candidate risk factors for ASD. We identified variants in MEFV and WNT10A, reported to be disease-associated in previous studies, which are likely to contribute to some of her additional clinical features. Moreover, candidate variants in genes encoding metabolic enzymes and transporters were identified, some of which suggest potential therapies. This case report describes the genomic findings in Prof. Grandin and it serves as an example to discuss state-of-the-art clinical diagnostics for individuals with ASD, as well as the medical, logistical, and economic hurdles that are involved in clinical genetic testing for an individual on the autism spectrum.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rena J. Vanzo
- Lineagen, Inc., Salt Lake City, UT 84109, USA; (A.P.); (L.S.); (C.H.H.); (M.A.S.); (E.R.W.)
| | - Aparna Prasad
- Lineagen, Inc., Salt Lake City, UT 84109, USA; (A.P.); (L.S.); (C.H.H.); (M.A.S.); (E.R.W.)
| | - Lauren Staunch
- Lineagen, Inc., Salt Lake City, UT 84109, USA; (A.P.); (L.S.); (C.H.H.); (M.A.S.); (E.R.W.)
| | - Charles H. Hensel
- Lineagen, Inc., Salt Lake City, UT 84109, USA; (A.P.); (L.S.); (C.H.H.); (M.A.S.); (E.R.W.)
| | - Moises A. Serrano
- Lineagen, Inc., Salt Lake City, UT 84109, USA; (A.P.); (L.S.); (C.H.H.); (M.A.S.); (E.R.W.)
| | - E. Robert Wassman
- Lineagen, Inc., Salt Lake City, UT 84109, USA; (A.P.); (L.S.); (C.H.H.); (M.A.S.); (E.R.W.)
| | | | - Temple Grandin
- Department of Animal Science, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA;
| | - Richard G. Boles
- The Center for Neurological and Neurodevelopmental Health, Voorhees, NJ 08043, USA;
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12
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Khor JM, Ettensohn CA. Transcription Factors of the Alx Family: Evolutionarily Conserved Regulators of Deuterostome Skeletogenesis. Front Genet 2020; 11:569314. [PMID: 33329706 PMCID: PMC7719703 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2020.569314] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/03/2020] [Accepted: 10/19/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Members of the alx gene family encode transcription factors that contain a highly conserved Paired-class, DNA-binding homeodomain, and a C-terminal OAR/Aristaless domain. Phylogenetic and comparative genomic studies have revealed complex patterns of alx gene duplications during deuterostome evolution. Remarkably, alx genes have been implicated in skeletogenesis in both echinoderms and vertebrates. In this review, we provide an overview of current knowledge concerning alx genes in deuterostomes. We highlight their evolutionarily conserved role in skeletogenesis and draw parallels and distinctions between the skeletogenic gene regulatory circuitries of diverse groups within the superphylum.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jian Ming Khor
- Department of Biological Sciences, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
| | - Charles A Ettensohn
- Department of Biological Sciences, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
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13
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Weigele J, Bohnsack BL. Genetics Underlying the Interactions between Neural Crest Cells and Eye Development. J Dev Biol 2020; 8:jdb8040026. [PMID: 33182738 PMCID: PMC7712190 DOI: 10.3390/jdb8040026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2020] [Revised: 11/03/2020] [Accepted: 11/07/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
The neural crest is a unique, transient stem cell population that is critical for craniofacial and ocular development. Understanding the genetics underlying the steps of neural crest development is essential for gaining insight into the pathogenesis of congenital eye diseases. The neural crest cells play an under-appreciated key role in patterning the neural epithelial-derived optic cup. These interactions between neural crest cells within the periocular mesenchyme and the optic cup, while not well-studied, are critical for optic cup morphogenesis and ocular fissure closure. As a result, microphthalmia and coloboma are common phenotypes in human disease and animal models in which neural crest cell specification and early migration are disrupted. In addition, neural crest cells directly contribute to numerous ocular structures including the cornea, iris, sclera, ciliary body, trabecular meshwork, and aqueous outflow tracts. Defects in later neural crest cell migration and differentiation cause a constellation of well-recognized ocular anterior segment anomalies such as Axenfeld–Rieger Syndrome and Peters Anomaly. This review will focus on the genetics of the neural crest cells within the context of how these complex processes specifically affect overall ocular development and can lead to congenital eye diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jochen Weigele
- Division of Ophthalmology, Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, 225 E. Chicago Ave, Chicago, IL 60611, USA;
- Department of Ophthalmology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, 645 N. Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60611, USA
| | - Brenda L. Bohnsack
- Division of Ophthalmology, Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, 225 E. Chicago Ave, Chicago, IL 60611, USA;
- Department of Ophthalmology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, 645 N. Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60611, USA
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +1-312-227-6180; Fax: +1-312-227-9411
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14
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Pini J, Kueper J, Hu YD, Kawasaki K, Yeung P, Tsimbal C, Yoon B, Carmichael N, Maas RL, Cotney J, Grinblat Y, Liao EC. ALX1-related frontonasal dysplasia results from defective neural crest cell development and migration. EMBO Mol Med 2020; 12:e12013. [PMID: 32914578 PMCID: PMC7539331 DOI: 10.15252/emmm.202012013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2020] [Revised: 08/12/2020] [Accepted: 08/13/2020] [Indexed: 01/02/2023] Open
Abstract
A pedigree of subjects presented with frontonasal dysplasia (FND). Genome sequencing and analysis identified a p.L165F missense variant in the homeodomain of the transcription factor ALX1 which was imputed to be pathogenic. Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) were derived from the subjects and differentiated to neural crest cells (NCC). NCC derived from ALX1L165F/L165F iPSC were more sensitive to apoptosis, showed an elevated expression of several neural crest progenitor state markers, and exhibited impaired migration compared to wild-type controls. NCC migration was evaluated in vivo using lineage tracing in a zebrafish model, which revealed defective migration of the anterior NCC stream that contributes to the median portion of the anterior neurocranium, phenocopying the clinical presentation. Analysis of human NCC culture media revealed a change in the level of bone morphogenic proteins (BMP), with a low level of BMP2 and a high level of BMP9. Soluble BMP2 and BMP9 antagonist treatments were able to rescue the defective migration phenotype. Taken together, these results demonstrate a mechanistic requirement of ALX1 in NCC development and migration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonathan Pini
- Center for Regenerative Medicine, Department of Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Shriners Hospital for Children, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Janina Kueper
- Center for Regenerative Medicine, Department of Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Shriners Hospital for Children, Boston, MA, USA
- Life and Brain Center, University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany
| | - Yiyuan David Hu
- Center for Regenerative Medicine, Department of Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Shriners Hospital for Children, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Kenta Kawasaki
- Center for Regenerative Medicine, Department of Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Shriners Hospital for Children, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Pan Yeung
- Center for Regenerative Medicine, Department of Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Shriners Hospital for Children, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Casey Tsimbal
- Center for Regenerative Medicine, Department of Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Shriners Hospital for Children, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Baul Yoon
- Departments of Integrative Biology, Neuroscience, and Genetics Ph.D. Training Program, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Nikkola Carmichael
- Department of Genetics, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Richard L Maas
- Department of Genetics, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Justin Cotney
- Genetics and Genome Sciences, UConn Health, Farmington, CT, USA
| | - Yevgenya Grinblat
- Departments of Integrative Biology, Neuroscience, and Genetics Ph.D. Training Program, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Eric C Liao
- Center for Regenerative Medicine, Department of Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Shriners Hospital for Children, Boston, MA, USA
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15
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Yoon KH, Fox SC, Dicipulo R, Lehmann OJ, Waskiewicz AJ. Ocular coloboma: Genetic variants reveal a dynamic model of eye development. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF MEDICAL GENETICS PART C-SEMINARS IN MEDICAL GENETICS 2020; 184:590-610. [PMID: 32852110 DOI: 10.1002/ajmg.c.31831] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2020] [Revised: 07/27/2020] [Accepted: 07/28/2020] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Ocular coloboma is a congenital disorder of the eye where a gap exists in the inferior retina, lens, iris, or optic nerve tissue. With a prevalence of 2-19 per 100,000 live births, coloboma, and microphthalmia, an associated ocular disorder, represent up to 10% of childhood blindness. It manifests due to the failure of choroid fissure closure during eye development, and it is a part of a spectrum of ocular disorders that include microphthalmia and anophthalmia. Use of genetic approaches from classical pedigree analyses to next generation sequencing has identified more than 40 loci that are associated with the causality of ocular coloboma. As we have expanded studies to include singleton cases, hereditability has been very challenging to prove. As such, researchers over the past 20 years, have unraveled the complex interrelationship amongst these 40 genes using vertebrate model organisms. Such research has greatly increased our understanding of eye development. These genes function to regulate initial specification of the eye field, migration of retinal precursors, patterning of the retina, neural crest cell biology, and activity of head mesoderm. This review will discuss the discovery of loci using patient data, their investigations in animal models, and the recent advances stemming from animal models that shed new light in patient diagnosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kevin H Yoon
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.,Women & Children's Health Research Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
| | - Sabrina C Fox
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.,Women & Children's Health Research Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
| | - Renée Dicipulo
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.,Women & Children's Health Research Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
| | - Ordan J Lehmann
- Women & Children's Health Research Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada.,Department of Medical Genetics, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.,Department of Ophthalmology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - Andrew J Waskiewicz
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.,Women & Children's Health Research Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
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16
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Sinagoga KL, Larimer-Picciani AM, George SM, Spencer SA, Lister JA, Gross JM. Mitf-family transcription factor function is required within cranial neural crest cells to promote choroid fissure closure. Development 2020; 147:dev187047. [PMID: 32541011 PMCID: PMC7375471 DOI: 10.1242/dev.187047] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2019] [Accepted: 05/29/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
A crucial step in eye development is the closure of the choroid fissure (CF), a transient structure in the ventral optic cup through which vasculature enters the eye and ganglion cell axons exit. Although many factors have been identified that function during CF closure, the molecular and cellular mechanisms mediating this process remain poorly understood. Failure of CF closure results in colobomas. Recently, MITF was shown to be mutated in a subset of individuals with colobomas, but how MITF functions during CF closure is unknown. To address this issue, zebrafish with mutations in mitfa and tfec, two members of the Mitf family of transcription factors, were analyzed and their functions during CF closure determined. mitfa;tfec mutants possess severe colobomas and our data demonstrate that Mitf activity is required within cranial neural crest cells (cNCCs) during CF closure. In the absence of Mitf function, cNCC migration and localization in the optic cup are perturbed. These data shed light on the cellular mechanisms underlying colobomas in individuals with MITF mutations and identify a novel role for Mitf function in cNCCs during CF closure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katie L Sinagoga
- Departments of Ophthalmology and Developmental Biology, Louis J. Fox Center for Vision Restoration, The University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
| | - Alessandra M Larimer-Picciani
- Departments of Ophthalmology and Developmental Biology, Louis J. Fox Center for Vision Restoration, The University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
| | - Stephanie M George
- Departments of Ophthalmology and Developmental Biology, Louis J. Fox Center for Vision Restoration, The University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
| | - Samantha A Spencer
- Department of Human and Molecular Genetics, Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine, Richmond, VA 23298, USA
| | - James A Lister
- Department of Human and Molecular Genetics, Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine, Richmond, VA 23298, USA
| | - Jeffrey M Gross
- Departments of Ophthalmology and Developmental Biology, Louis J. Fox Center for Vision Restoration, The University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
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17
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Markitantova Y, Simirskii V. Inherited Eye Diseases with Retinal Manifestations through the Eyes of Homeobox Genes. Int J Mol Sci 2020; 21:E1602. [PMID: 32111086 PMCID: PMC7084737 DOI: 10.3390/ijms21051602] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2020] [Revised: 02/21/2020] [Accepted: 02/24/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Retinal development is under the coordinated control of overlapping networks of signaling pathways and transcription factors. The paper was conceived as a review of the data and ideas that have been formed to date on homeobox genes mutations that lead to the disruption of eye organogenesis and result in inherited eye/retinal diseases. Many of these diseases are part of the same clinical spectrum and have high genetic heterogeneity with already identified associated genes. We summarize the known key regulators of eye development, with a focus on the homeobox genes associated with monogenic eye diseases showing retinal manifestations. Recent advances in the field of genetics and high-throughput next-generation sequencing technologies, including single-cell transcriptome analysis have allowed for deepening of knowledge of the genetic basis of inherited retinal diseases (IRDs), as well as improve their diagnostics. We highlight some promising avenues of research involving molecular-genetic and cell-technology approaches that can be effective for IRDs therapy. The most promising neuroprotective strategies are aimed at mobilizing the endogenous cellular reserve of the retina.
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18
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Craenen K, Verslegers M, Craeghs L, Quintens R, Janssen A, Coolkens A, Baatout S, Moons L, Benotmane MA. Abnormal retinal pigment epithelium melanogenesis as a major determinant for radiation-induced congenital eye defects. Reprod Toxicol 2019; 91:59-73. [PMID: 31705956 DOI: 10.1016/j.reprotox.2019.10.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2019] [Revised: 08/30/2019] [Accepted: 10/07/2019] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Abstract
Recent studies highlighted a link between ionizing radiation exposure during neurulation and birth defects such as microphthalmos and anophthalmos. Because the mechanisms underlying these defects remain largely unexplored, we irradiated pregnant C57BL/6J mice (1.0 Gy, X-rays) at embryonic day (E)7.5, followed by histological and gene/protein expression analyses at defined days. Irradiation impaired embryonic development at E9 and we observed a delayed pigmentation of the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) at E11. In addition, a reduced RNA expression and protein abundance of critical eye-development genes (e.g. Pax6 and Lhx2) was observed. Furthermore, a decreased expression of Mitf, Tyr and Tyrp1 supported the radiation-induced perturbation in RPE pigmentation. Finally, via immunostainings for proliferation (Ki67) and mitosis (phosphorylated histone 3), a decreased mitotic index was observed in the E18 retina after exposure at E7.5. Overall, we propose a plausible etiological model for radiation-induced eye-size defects, with RPE melanogenesis as a major determining factor.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kai Craenen
- Radiobiology Unit, Interdisciplinary Biosciences, Institute for Environment, Health and Safety, Belgian Nuclear Research Centre SCK-CEN, Boeretang 200, Mol 2400, Belgium; Laboratory of Neural Circuit Development and Regeneration, Animal Physiology and Neurobiology section, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, KU Leuven, Naamsestraat 61 bus 2464, Leuven 3000, Belgium
| | - Mieke Verslegers
- Radiobiology Unit, Interdisciplinary Biosciences, Institute for Environment, Health and Safety, Belgian Nuclear Research Centre SCK-CEN, Boeretang 200, Mol 2400, Belgium
| | - Livine Craeghs
- Radiobiology Unit, Interdisciplinary Biosciences, Institute for Environment, Health and Safety, Belgian Nuclear Research Centre SCK-CEN, Boeretang 200, Mol 2400, Belgium; Laboratory of Neural Circuit Development and Regeneration, Animal Physiology and Neurobiology section, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, KU Leuven, Naamsestraat 61 bus 2464, Leuven 3000, Belgium
| | - Roel Quintens
- Radiobiology Unit, Interdisciplinary Biosciences, Institute for Environment, Health and Safety, Belgian Nuclear Research Centre SCK-CEN, Boeretang 200, Mol 2400, Belgium
| | - Ann Janssen
- Radiobiology Unit, Interdisciplinary Biosciences, Institute for Environment, Health and Safety, Belgian Nuclear Research Centre SCK-CEN, Boeretang 200, Mol 2400, Belgium
| | - Amelie Coolkens
- Radiobiology Unit, Interdisciplinary Biosciences, Institute for Environment, Health and Safety, Belgian Nuclear Research Centre SCK-CEN, Boeretang 200, Mol 2400, Belgium
| | - Sarah Baatout
- Radiobiology Unit, Interdisciplinary Biosciences, Institute for Environment, Health and Safety, Belgian Nuclear Research Centre SCK-CEN, Boeretang 200, Mol 2400, Belgium
| | - Lieve Moons
- Laboratory of Neural Circuit Development and Regeneration, Animal Physiology and Neurobiology section, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, KU Leuven, Naamsestraat 61 bus 2464, Leuven 3000, Belgium
| | - Mohammed Abderrafi Benotmane
- Radiobiology Unit, Interdisciplinary Biosciences, Institute for Environment, Health and Safety, Belgian Nuclear Research Centre SCK-CEN, Boeretang 200, Mol 2400, Belgium.
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19
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Salomies L, Eymann J, Khan I, Di-Poï N. The alternative regenerative strategy of bearded dragon unveils the key processes underlying vertebrate tooth renewal. eLife 2019; 8:47702. [PMID: 31418691 PMCID: PMC6744223 DOI: 10.7554/elife.47702] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2019] [Accepted: 08/16/2019] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Deep understanding of tooth regeneration is hampered by the lack of lifelong replacing oral dentition in most conventional models. Here, we show that the bearded dragon, one of the rare vertebrate species with both polyphyodont and monophyodont teeth, constitutes a key model for filling this gap, allowing direct comparison of extreme dentition types. Our developmental and high-throughput transcriptomic data of microdissected dental cells unveils the critical importance of successional dental lamina patterning, in addition to maintenance, for vertebrate tooth renewal. This patterning process happens at various levels, including directional growth but also gene expression levels, dynamics, and regionalization, and involves a large number of yet uncharacterized dental genes. Furthermore, the alternative renewal mechanism of bearded dragon dentition, with dual location of slow-cycling cells, demonstrates the importance of cell migration and functional specialization of putative epithelial stem/progenitor niches in tissue regeneration, while expanding the diversity of dental replacement strategies in vertebrates. All multicellular organisms, from lizards to humans, must be able to repair and regrow damaged tissue. This includes not only healing after an injury, but also replacing parts of the body that suffer wear and tear. For example, many animals shed and replace worn out teeth throughout their life, but the number of times this occurs varies greatly between species. Much of the understanding about how teeth grow and develop has come from researching mice. However, mice only develop one set of teeth, making them a poor ‘model’ for studying how species such as fish and reptiles can re-grow and replace their teeth. Recent studies of these species has shown that regenerating teeth relies on a specialised structure known as the dental lamina. In mice, the dental lamina forms but then quickly disappears, preventing new sets of teeth from developing. In most animals that regrow their teeth, however, the dental lamina keeps growing beyond the most recently produced tooth to create an area where its replacement will emerge. Now, Salomies et al. have identified other strategies involved in tooth replacement from studying the bearded dragon lizard, a rare example of an animal that continuously regenerates some, but not all, of its teeth. Analysing the cells in different parts of the re-growing teeth from bearded dragon lizards revealed new features of the dental lamina. Specifically, Salomies et al. found that a previously uncharacterized set of genes within the dental lamina could determine whether or not a tooth will be replaced. Further experiments using microscope imaging revealed that bearded dragon lizards use two distinct groups of stem cells – specialised cells that have the potential to develop into various cell types in the body – to re-grow their teeth. These experiments demonstrate how the bearded dragon lizard uses a previously unknown mechanism to regenerate its teeth, combining elements used by gecko lizards and sharks. These findings are an important step towards understanding the different strategies animals can use to maintain and regenerate their teeth. The knowledge gained could one day help design better therapies for patients suffering from inherited dental disorders or tooth loss.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lotta Salomies
- Program in Developmental Biology, Institute of Biotechnology, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Julia Eymann
- Program in Developmental Biology, Institute of Biotechnology, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Imran Khan
- Program in Developmental Biology, Institute of Biotechnology, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Nicolas Di-Poï
- Program in Developmental Biology, Institute of Biotechnology, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
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20
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Wang H, Holland PWH, Takahashi T. Gene profiling of head mesoderm in early zebrafish development: insights into the evolution of cranial mesoderm. EvoDevo 2019; 10:14. [PMID: 31312422 PMCID: PMC6612195 DOI: 10.1186/s13227-019-0128-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2018] [Accepted: 06/26/2019] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Background The evolution of the head was one of the key events that marked the transition from invertebrates to vertebrates. With the emergence of structures such as eyes and jaws, vertebrates evolved an active and predatory life style and radiated into diversity of large-bodied animals. These organs are moved by cranial muscles that derive embryologically from head mesoderm. Compared with other embryonic components of the head, such as placodes and cranial neural crest cells, our understanding of cranial mesoderm is limited and is restricted to few species. Results Here, we report the expression patterns of key genes in zebrafish head mesoderm at very early developmental stages. Apart from a basic anterior–posterior axis marked by a combination of pitx2 and tbx1 expression, we find that most gene expression patterns are poorly conserved between zebrafish and chick, suggesting fewer developmental constraints imposed than in trunk mesoderm. Interestingly, the gene expression patterns clearly show the early establishment of medial–lateral compartmentalisation in zebrafish head mesoderm, comprising a wide medial zone flanked by two narrower strips. Conclusions In zebrafish head mesoderm, there is no clear molecular regionalisation along the anteroposterior axis as previously reported in chick embryos. In contrast, the medial–lateral regionalisation is formed at early developmental stages. These patterns correspond to the distinction between paraxial mesoderm and lateral plate mesoderm in the trunk, suggesting a common groundplan for patterning head and trunk mesoderm. By comparison of these expression patterns to that of amphioxus homologues, we argue for an evolutionary link between zebrafish head mesoderm and amphioxus anteriormost somites. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s13227-019-0128-3) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huijia Wang
- 1Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PT UK
| | - Peter W H Holland
- 2Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Zoology Research and Administration Building, 11a Mansfield Road, Oxford, OX1 3SZ UK
| | - Tokiharu Takahashi
- 1Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, The University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PT UK
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Barba M, Di Pietro L, Massimi L, Geloso MC, Frassanito P, Caldarelli M, Michetti F, Della Longa S, Romitti PA, Di Rocco C, Arcovito A, Parolini O, Tamburrini G, Bernardini C, Boyadjiev SA, Lattanzi W. BBS9 gene in nonsyndromic craniosynostosis: Role of the primary cilium in the aberrant ossification of the suture osteogenic niche. Bone 2018; 112:58-70. [PMID: 29674126 PMCID: PMC5970090 DOI: 10.1016/j.bone.2018.04.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2018] [Revised: 04/12/2018] [Accepted: 04/14/2018] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
Nonsyndromic craniosynostosis (NCS) is the premature ossification of skull sutures, without associated clinical features. Mutations in several genes account for a small number of NCS patients; thus, the molecular etiopathogenesis of NCS remains largely unclear. Our study aimed at characterizing the molecular signaling implicated in the aberrant ossification of sutures in NCS patients. Comparative gene expression profiling of NCS patient sutures identified a fused suture-specific signature, including 17 genes involved in primary cilium signaling and assembly. Cells from fused sutures displayed a reduced potential to form primary cilia compared to cells from control patent sutures of the same patient. We identified specific upregulated splice variants of the Bardet Biedl syndrome-associated gene 9 (BBS9), which encodes a structural component of the ciliary BBSome complex. BBS9 expression increased during in vitro osteogenic differentiation of suture-derived mesenchymal cells of NCS patients. Also, Bbs9 expression increased during in vivo ossification of rat sutures. BBS9 functional knockdown affected the expression of primary cilia on patient suture cells and their osteogenic potential. Computational modeling of the upregulated protein isoforms (observed in patients) predicted that their binding affinity within the BBSome may be affected, providing a possible explanation for the aberrant suture ossification in NCS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marta Barba
- Istituto di Anatomia Umana e Biologia Cellulare, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Rome, Italy; Fondazione Policlinico Universitario "Agostino Gemelli", 00168 Rome, Italy
| | - Lorena Di Pietro
- Istituto di Anatomia Umana e Biologia Cellulare, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Rome, Italy
| | - Luca Massimi
- Fondazione Policlinico Universitario "Agostino Gemelli", 00168 Rome, Italy; Istituto di Neurochirurgia, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Rome, Italy
| | - Maria Concetta Geloso
- Istituto di Anatomia Umana e Biologia Cellulare, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Rome, Italy; Fondazione Policlinico Universitario "Agostino Gemelli", 00168 Rome, Italy
| | - Paolo Frassanito
- Fondazione Policlinico Universitario "Agostino Gemelli", 00168 Rome, Italy
| | - Massimo Caldarelli
- Fondazione Policlinico Universitario "Agostino Gemelli", 00168 Rome, Italy; Istituto di Neurochirurgia, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Rome, Italy
| | - Fabrizio Michetti
- Istituto di Anatomia Umana e Biologia Cellulare, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Rome, Italy
| | - Stefano Della Longa
- Department of Life, Health and Environmental Sciences, University of L'Aquila, 67100, L'Aquila, Italy
| | - Paul A Romitti
- Department of Epidemiology, College of Public Health, University of Iowa, Iowa City, 52242, IA, USA
| | - Concezio Di Rocco
- Department of Neurosurgery, International Neuroscience Institute, 30625 Hannover, Germany
| | - Alessandro Arcovito
- Istituto di Neurochirurgia, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Rome, Italy; Istituto di Biochimica e Biochimica Clinica, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Rome, Italy
| | - Ornella Parolini
- Istituto di Anatomia Umana e Biologia Cellulare, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Rome, Italy; Fondazione Policlinico Universitario "Agostino Gemelli", 00168 Rome, Italy; Centro di Ricerca E. Menni, Fondazione Poliambulanza-Istituto Ospedaliero, 25124 Brescia, Italy
| | - Gianpiero Tamburrini
- Fondazione Policlinico Universitario "Agostino Gemelli", 00168 Rome, Italy; Istituto di Neurochirurgia, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Rome, Italy
| | - Camilla Bernardini
- Istituto di Anatomia Umana e Biologia Cellulare, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Rome, Italy; Fondazione Policlinico Universitario "Agostino Gemelli", 00168 Rome, Italy
| | - Simeon A Boyadjiev
- Section of Genomics, Department of Pediatrics, University of California, 95817 Sacramento, CA, USA
| | - Wanda Lattanzi
- Istituto di Anatomia Umana e Biologia Cellulare, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 00168 Rome, Italy; Fondazione Policlinico Universitario "Agostino Gemelli", 00168 Rome, Italy.
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Ullah A, Umair M, E-Kalsoom U, Shahzad S, Basit S, Ahmad W. Exome sequencing revealed a novel nonsense variant in ALX3 gene underlying frontorhiny. J Hum Genet 2017; 63:97-100. [PMID: 29215096 DOI: 10.1038/s10038-017-0358-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2017] [Revised: 08/13/2017] [Accepted: 08/17/2017] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Frontorhiny is one of the two forms of mid-facial malformations characterized by ocular hypertelorism, wide and short nasal ridge, bifid nasal tip, broad columella, widely separated nares, long and wide philtrum and V-shaped hairline. Sometimes these phenotypes are associated with ptosis and midline dermoid cysts. Frontorhiny inherits in an autosomal recessive pattern. Sequence variants in the Aristaless-like homeobox 3 (ALX3) gene underlying frontorhiny have been reported previously. Here, in the present study, we have investigated four patients in a consanguineous family of Pakistani origin segregating frontorhiny in autosomal recessive manner. Genome scan using 250k Nsp1 array followed by exome and Sanger sequence analysis revealed a novel homozygous nonsense variant (c.604C>T, p.Gln202*) in the ALX3 gene resulting in frontorhiny in the family. This is the first mutation in the ALX3 gene, underlying frontorhiny, in Pakistani population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Asmat Ullah
- Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Quaid-i-Azam University Islamabad, Islamabad, Pakistan
| | - Muhammad Umair
- Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Quaid-i-Azam University Islamabad, Islamabad, Pakistan
| | - Umm E-Kalsoom
- Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Quaid-i-Azam University Islamabad, Islamabad, Pakistan
| | - Shaheen Shahzad
- Department of Biotechnology, International Islamic University, Islamabad, Pakistan
| | - Sulman Basit
- Center for Genetics and Inherited Diseases, Taibah University Al Madinah, Al Munawarah, Saudi Arabia
| | - Wasim Ahmad
- Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Quaid-i-Azam University Islamabad, Islamabad, Pakistan.
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23
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Sedykh I, Yoon B, Roberson L, Moskvin O, Dewey CN, Grinblat Y. Zebrafish zic2 controls formation of periocular neural crest and choroid fissure morphogenesis. Dev Biol 2017; 429:92-104. [PMID: 28689736 DOI: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2017.07.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/14/2017] [Revised: 05/30/2017] [Accepted: 07/06/2017] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
The vertebrate retina develops in close proximity to the forebrain and neural crest-derived cartilages of the face and jaw. Coloboma, a congenital eye malformation, is associated with aberrant forebrain development (holoprosencephaly) and with craniofacial defects (frontonasal dysplasia) in humans, suggesting a critical role for cross-lineage interactions during retinal morphogenesis. ZIC2, a zinc-finger transcription factor, is linked to human holoprosencephaly. We have previously used morpholino assays to show zebrafish zic2 functions in the developing forebrain, retina and craniofacial cartilage. We now report that zebrafish with genetic lesions in zebrafish zic2 orthologs, zic2a and zic2b, develop with retinal coloboma and craniofacial anomalies. We demonstrate a requirement for zic2 in restricting pax2a expression and show evidence that zic2 function limits Hh signaling. RNA-seq transcriptome analysis identified an early requirement for zic2 in periocular neural crest as an activator of alx1, a transcription factor with essential roles in craniofacial and ocular morphogenesis in human and zebrafish. Collectively, these data establish zic2 mutant zebrafish as a powerful new genetic model for in-depth dissection of cell interactions and genetic controls during craniofacial complex development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Irina Sedykh
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706, USA; Department of Neuroscience, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706, USA
| | - Baul Yoon
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706, USA; Department of Neuroscience, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706, USA; Genetics Ph. D. Training Program, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706, USA
| | - Laura Roberson
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706, USA; Department of Neuroscience, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706, USA
| | - Oleg Moskvin
- Primate Research Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706, USA
| | - Colin N Dewey
- Department of Biostatistics and Medical Informatics, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706, USA
| | - Yevgenya Grinblat
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706, USA; Department of Neuroscience, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706, USA; McPherson Eye Research Institute, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, 53706, USA.
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24
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Square T, Jandzik D, Romášek M, Cerny R, Medeiros DM. The origin and diversification of the developmental mechanisms that pattern the vertebrate head skeleton. Dev Biol 2017; 427:219-229. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2016.11.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2016] [Revised: 10/06/2016] [Accepted: 11/20/2016] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
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Dainezi VB, Das Neves LT, Da Silva Dalben G, Gomide MR. Tooth Abnormalities and Occlusal Disorders in Individuals with Frontonasal Dysplasia. Cleft Palate Craniofac J 2017; 54:304-308. [DOI: 10.1597/15-286] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Objective Frontonasal dysplasia is a rare developmental defect of the midface, and little is known about the dental involvement in individuals with this condition. This study investigated tooth abnormalities and occlusal disorders in individuals with frontonasal dysplasia. Design Cross-sectional. Setting Hospital for Rehabilitation of Craniofacial Anomalies, University of São Paulo, Bauru, Brazil. Interventions Clinical oral examination, analysis of patient records, and panoramic radiographs. Participants A total of 20 individuals with frontonasal dysplasia aged 7 to 17 years. Main Outcome Measures Prevalence of the several tooth abnormalities and occlusal disorders analyzed. Results A total of 19 individuals presented at least one tooth abnormality, with highly variable findings. In radiographs, 20% of individuals (all presenting oral clefts) presented agenesis of lateral incisors and second premolars. No supernumerary teeth were observed; 65% of individuals exhibited occlusal alterations, especially anterior open bite in the two individuals with median cleft lip. Conclusions Variable clinical and radiographic alterations were observed, probably due to the large variety of phenotypic characteristics. No specific dental alteration could be related with frontonasal dysplasia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vanessa Benetello Dainezi
- Department of Pediatric Dentistry, Piracicaba Dental School, University of Campinas, Piracicaba, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Lucimara Teixeira Das Neves
- Department of Biological Sciences, Bauru School of Dentistry and Hospital for Rehabilitation of Craniofacial Anomalies, University of São Paulo, Bauru, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Gisele Da Silva Dalben
- Pediatric and Community Dentistry Sector, Hospital for Rehabilitation of Craniofacial Anomalies, University of São Paulo, Bauru, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Marcia Ribeiro Gomide
- Pediatric and Community Dentistry Sector, Hospital for Rehabilitation of Craniofacial Anomalies, University of São Paulo, Bauru, São Paulo, Brazil
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26
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Burton DF, Zhang C, Boa-Amponsem O, Mackinnon S, Cole GJ. Long-term behavioral change as a result of acute ethanol exposure in zebrafish: Evidence for a role for sonic hedgehog but not retinoic acid signaling. Neurotoxicol Teratol 2017; 61:66-73. [PMID: 28223149 DOI: 10.1016/j.ntt.2017.01.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2016] [Revised: 01/17/2017] [Accepted: 01/22/2017] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Developmental exposure to ethanol is recognized to produce long-term neurobehavioral impairment in multiple animal models. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying these deficits remain poorly understood. The present study was undertaken to ascertain whether two well-characterized targets of prenatal alcohol exposure, sonic hedgehog (Shh) and retinoic acid (RA), that induce the hallmark morphological phenotypes of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD), are involved in the generation of behavioral alterations as a result of alcohol exposure. METHODS Zebrafish embryos were exposed to ethanol (0%, 1%, 3%) at either 8-10 or 24-27h post-fertilization (hpf) and then evaluated during adolescence in the novel tank dive test to assess anxiety and risk-taking behavior. Overt signs of dysmorphogenesis were also scored and behavioral and morphological changes were compared for embryos treated with alcohol alone or in combination with subthreshold doses of shh or alhh1a3 morpholinos (MOs). RESULTS Ethanol treated fish displayed altered tank diving behavior that was not exacerbated by combined MO treatment. While treatment of embryos with either shha mRNA or RA prior to ethanol exposure only ameliorated the altered tank diving response in the case of shha mRNA overexpression, dysmorphogenesis was rescued by both treatments. CONCLUSION These results suggest that the effects of ethanol exposure on changes in anxiety and risk-taking behavior in adolescent zebrafish is manifested by a blunting of Shh, but not RA, signaling during early development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Derek F Burton
- Julius L. Chambers Biomedical/Biotechnology Research Institute, United States; Department of Biological and Biomedical Sciences, United States
| | - Chengjin Zhang
- Julius L. Chambers Biomedical/Biotechnology Research Institute, United States
| | - Oswald Boa-Amponsem
- Julius L. Chambers Biomedical/Biotechnology Research Institute, United States; Integrated Biosciences Program, North Carolina Central University, Durham, NC 27707, United States
| | - Shanta Mackinnon
- Julius L. Chambers Biomedical/Biotechnology Research Institute, United States
| | - Gregory J Cole
- Julius L. Chambers Biomedical/Biotechnology Research Institute, United States; Department of Biological and Biomedical Sciences, United States.
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27
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Lattanzi W, Barba M, Di Pietro L, Boyadjiev SA. Genetic advances in craniosynostosis. Am J Med Genet A 2017; 173:1406-1429. [PMID: 28160402 DOI: 10.1002/ajmg.a.38159] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2015] [Revised: 12/30/2016] [Accepted: 01/06/2017] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Craniosynostosis, the premature ossification of one or more skull sutures, is a clinically and genetically heterogeneous congenital anomaly affecting approximately one in 2,500 live births. In most cases, it occurs as an isolated congenital anomaly, that is, nonsyndromic craniosynostosis (NCS), the genetic, and environmental causes of which remain largely unknown. Recent data suggest that, at least some of the midline NCS cases may be explained by two loci inheritance. In approximately 25-30% of patients, craniosynostosis presents as a feature of a genetic syndrome due to chromosomal defects or mutations in genes within interconnected signaling pathways. The aim of this review is to provide a detailed and comprehensive update on the genetic and environmental factors associated with NCS, integrating the scientific findings achieved during the last decade. Focus on the neurodevelopmental, imaging, and treatment aspects of NCS is also provided.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wanda Lattanzi
- Institute of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Rome, Italy.,Latium Musculoskeletal Tıssue Bank, Rome, Italy
| | - Marta Barba
- Institute of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Rome, Italy
| | - Lorena Di Pietro
- Institute of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Rome, Italy
| | - Simeon A Boyadjiev
- Division of Genomic Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Davis Medical Center, University of California, Sacramento, California
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28
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Nichols JT, Blanco-Sánchez B, Brooks EP, Parthasarathy R, Dowd J, Subramanian A, Nachtrab G, Poss KD, Schilling TF, Kimmel CB. Ligament versus bone cell identity in the zebrafish hyoid skeleton is regulated by mef2ca. Development 2016; 143:4430-4440. [PMID: 27789622 PMCID: PMC5201047 DOI: 10.1242/dev.141036] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2016] [Accepted: 10/18/2016] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Heightened phenotypic variation among mutant animals is a well-known, but poorly understood phenomenon. One hypothetical mechanism accounting for mutant phenotypic variation is progenitor cells variably choosing between two alternative fates during development. Zebrafish mef2cab1086 mutants develop tremendously variable ectopic bone in their hyoid craniofacial skeleton. Here, we report evidence that a key component of this phenotype is variable fate switching from ligament to bone. We discover that a 'track' of tissue prone to become bone cells is a previously undescribed ligament. Fate-switch variability is heritable, and comparing mutant strains selectively bred to high and low penetrance revealed differential mef2ca mutant transcript expression between high and low penetrance strains. Consistent with this, experimental manipulation of mef2ca mutant transcripts modifies the penetrance of the fate switch. Furthermore, we discovered a transposable element that resides immediately upstream of the mef2ca locus and is differentially DNA methylated in the two strains, correlating with differential mef2ca expression. We propose that variable transposon epigenetic silencing underlies the variable mef2ca mutant bone phenotype, and could be a widespread mechanism of phenotypic variability in animals.
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Affiliation(s)
- James T Nichols
- Department of Biology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403, USA
| | | | - Elliott P Brooks
- Department of Biology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403, USA
| | | | - John Dowd
- Department of Biology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403, USA
| | - Arul Subramanian
- Department of Developmental and Cell Biology, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697, USA
| | - Gregory Nachtrab
- Department of Cell Biology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Kenneth D Poss
- Department of Cell Biology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Thomas F Schilling
- Department of Developmental and Cell Biology, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697, USA
| | - Charles B Kimmel
- Department of Biology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403, USA
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29
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Farlie PG, Baker NL, Yap P, Tan TY. Frontonasal Dysplasia: Towards an Understanding of Molecular and Developmental Aetiology. Mol Syndromol 2016; 7:312-321. [PMID: 27920634 DOI: 10.1159/000450533] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 08/10/2016] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
The complex anatomy of the skull and face arises from the requirement to support multiple sensory and structural functions. During embryonic development, the diverse component elements of the neuro- and viscerocranium must be generated independently and subsequently united in a manner that sustains and promotes the growth of the brain and sensory organs, while achieving a level of structural integrity necessary for the individual to become a free-living organism. While each of these individual craniofacial components is essential, the cranial and facial midline lies at a structural nexus that unites these disparately derived elements, fusing them into a whole. Defects of the craniofacial midline can have a profound impact on both form and function, manifesting in a diverse array of phenotypes and clinical entities that can be broadly defined as frontonasal dysplasias (FNDs). Recent advances in the identification of the genetic basis of FNDs along with the analysis of developmental mechanisms impacted by these mutations have dramatically altered our understanding of this complex group of conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter G Farlie
- Murdoch Childrens Research Institute, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Vic., Australia; Department of Paediatrics, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Vic., Australia
| | - Naomi L Baker
- Murdoch Childrens Research Institute, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Vic., Australia; Department of Paediatrics, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Vic., Australia
| | - Patrick Yap
- Victorian Clinical Genetics Service, Royal Children's Hospital, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Vic., Australia; Genetic Health Service New Zealand (Northern Hub), Auckland City Hospital, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Tiong Y Tan
- Victorian Clinical Genetics Service, Royal Children's Hospital, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Vic., Australia; Department of Paediatrics, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Vic., Australia
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30
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Ullah A, Kalsoom UE, Umair M, John P, Ansar M, Basit S, Ahmad W. Exome sequencing revealed a novel splice site variant in the ALX1 gene underlying frontonasal dysplasia. Clin Genet 2016; 91:494-498. [PMID: 27324866 DOI: 10.1111/cge.12822] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/20/2016] [Revised: 06/11/2016] [Accepted: 06/13/2016] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Frontonasal dysplasia (FND) is a heterogeneous group of disorders characterized by hypertelorism, telecanthus, broad nasal root, wide prominent nasal bridge, short and wide nasal ridge, broad columella and smooth philtrum. To date one X-linked and three autosomal recessive forms of FND have been reported in different ethnic groups. We sought to identify the gene responsible for FND in a consanguineous Pakistani family segregating the disorder in autosomal recessive pattern. Genome-wide homozygosity mapping using 250KNsp array revealed five homozygous regions in the selected affected individuals. Exome sequencing found a novel splice acceptor site variant (c.661-1G>C: NM_006982.2) in ALX1. Sanger sequencing confirmed the correct segregation of the pathogenic variant in the whole family. Our study concludes that the splice site variant identified in the ALX1 gene causes mild form of FND.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Ullah
- Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad, Pakistan
| | - U-E Kalsoom
- Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad, Pakistan
| | - M Umair
- Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad, Pakistan
| | - P John
- Department of Healthcare Biotechnology, Atta-ur-Rehman School of Applied Biosciences (ASAB), National University of Science & Technology (NUST), Islamabad, Pakistan
| | - M Ansar
- Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad, Pakistan
| | - S Basit
- Center for Genetics and Inherited Diseases, Taibah University, Al Madinah Al Munawarah, Saudi Arabia
| | - W Ahmad
- Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad, Pakistan
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31
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Bire S, Casteret S, Piégu B, Beauclair L, Moiré N, Arensbuger P, Bigot Y. Mariner Transposons Contain a Silencer: Possible Role of the Polycomb Repressive Complex 2. PLoS Genet 2016; 12:e1005902. [PMID: 26939020 PMCID: PMC4777549 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1005902] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/24/2014] [Accepted: 02/05/2016] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Transposable elements are driving forces for establishing genetic innovations such as transcriptional regulatory networks in eukaryotic genomes. Here, we describe a silencer situated in the last 300 bp of the Mos1 transposase open reading frame (ORF) which functions in vertebrate and arthropod cells. Functional silencers are also found at similar locations within three other animal mariner elements, i.e. IS630-Tc1-mariner (ITm) DD34D elements, Himar1, Hsmar1 and Mcmar1. These silencers are able to impact eukaryotic promoters monitoring strong, moderate or low expression as well as those of mariner elements located upstream of the transposase ORF. We report that the silencing involves at least two transcription factors (TFs) that are conserved within animal species, NFAT-5 and Alx1. These cooperatively act with YY1 to trigger the silencing activity. Four other housekeeping transcription factors (TFs), neuron restrictive silencer factor (NRSF), GAGA factor (GAF) and GTGT factor (GTF), were also found to have binding sites within mariner silencers but their impact in modulating the silencer activity remains to be further specified. Interestingly, an NRSF binding site was found to overlap a 30 bp motif coding a highly conserved PHxxYSPDLAPxD peptide in mariner transposases. We also present experimental evidence that silencing is mainly achieved by co-opting the host Polycomb Repressive Complex 2 pathway. However, we observe that when PRC2 is impaired another host silencing pathway potentially takes over to maintain weak silencer activity. Mariner silencers harbour features of Polycomb Response Elements, which are probably a way for mariner elements to self-repress their transcription and mobility in somatic and germinal cells when the required TFs are expressed. At the evolutionary scale, mariner elements, through their exaptation, might have been a source of silencers playing a role in the chromatin configuration in eukaryotic genomes. Transposons are mobile DNA sequences that have long co-evolved with the genome of their hosts. Consequently, they are involved in the generation of mutations, as well as the creation of genes and regulatory networks. Controlling the transposon activity, and consequently its negative effects on both the host soma and germ line, is a challenge for the survival of both the host and the transposon. To silence transposons, hosts often use defence mechanisms involving DNA methylation and RNA interference pathways. Here we show that mariner transposons can self-regulate their activity by using a silencer element located in their DNA sequence. The silencer element interferes with host housekeeping protein transcription factors involved in the polycomb silencing pathways. As the regulation of chromatin configuration by polycomb is an important regulator of animal development, our findings open the possibility that mariner silencers might have been exapted during animal evolution to participate in certain regulation pathways of their hosts. Since some of the TFs involved in mariner silencer activity play a role at different stages of nervous system development and neuron differentiation, it might be possible that mariner transposons can be active during some steps of cell differentiation. Interestingly, mariner transposons (i.e. IS630-Tc1-mariner (ITm) DD34D transposons) have so far only been found in genomes of animals having a nervous system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Solenne Bire
- PRC, UMR INRA-CNRS 7247, PRC, Nouzilly, France
- Institute of Biotechnology, University of Lausanne, and Center for Biotechnology UNIL-EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | | | | | | | | | - Peter Arensbuger
- Biological Sciences Department, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, California, United States of America
| | - Yves Bigot
- PRC, UMR INRA-CNRS 7247, PRC, Nouzilly, France
- * E-mail:
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Lyons LA, Erdman CA, Grahn RA, Hamilton MJ, Carter MJ, Helps CR, Alhaddad H, Gandolfi B. Aristaless-Like Homeobox protein 1 (ALX1) variant associated with craniofacial structure and frontonasal dysplasia in Burmese cats. Dev Biol 2015; 409:451-8. [PMID: 26610632 DOI: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2015.11.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/02/2015] [Revised: 11/03/2015] [Accepted: 11/20/2015] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
Abstract
Frontonasal dysplasia (FND) can have severe presentations that are medically and socially debilitating. Several genes are implicated in FND conditions, including Aristaless-Like Homeobox 1 (ALX1), which is associated with FND3. Breeds of cats are selected and bred for extremes in craniofacial morphologies. In particular, a lineage of Burmese cats with severe brachycephyla is extremely popular and is termed Contemporary Burmese. Genetic studies demonstrated that the brachycephyla of the Contemporary Burmese is a simple co-dominant trait, however, the homozygous cats have a severe craniofacial defect that is incompatible with life. The craniofacial defect of the Burmese was genetically analyzed over a 20 year period, using various genetic analysis techniques. Family-based linkage analysis localized the trait to cat chromosome B4. Genome-wide association studies and other genetic analyses of SNP data refined a critical region. Sequence analysis identified a 12bp in frame deletion in ALX1, c.496delCTCTCAGGACTG, which is 100% concordant with the craniofacial defect and not found in cats not related to the Contemporary Burmese.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leslie A Lyons
- Department of Veterinary Medicine & Surgery, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Missouri-Columbia, Columbia, MO 65211, USA; Department of Population Health and Reproduction, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California-Davis, Davis, CA 95776, USA.
| | - Carolyn A Erdman
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California-San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA; Department of Population Health and Reproduction, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California-Davis, Davis, CA 95776, USA
| | - Robert A Grahn
- Veterinary Genetics Laboratory, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California-Davis, Davis, CA 96516, USA; Department of Population Health and Reproduction, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California-Davis, Davis, CA 95776, USA
| | - Michael J Hamilton
- Department of Cell Biology and Neuroscience, Institute for Integrative Genome Biology, Center for Disease Vector Research, University of California-Riverside, Riverside, CA 92521, USA; Department of Population Health and Reproduction, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California-Davis, Davis, CA 95776, USA
| | - Michael J Carter
- MDxHealth Inc, 15279 Alton Parkway, Suite #100, Irvine, CA 92618, USA; Department of Population Health and Reproduction, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California-Davis, Davis, CA 95776, USA
| | | | | | - Barbara Gandolfi
- Department of Veterinary Medicine & Surgery, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Missouri-Columbia, Columbia, MO 65211, USA; Department of Population Health and Reproduction, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California-Davis, Davis, CA 95776, USA
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Zhang C, Anderson A, Cole GJ. Analysis of crosstalk between retinoic acid and sonic hedgehog pathways following ethanol exposure in embryonic zebrafish. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2015; 103:1046-57. [PMID: 26470995 DOI: 10.1002/bdra.23460] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2015] [Revised: 09/02/2015] [Accepted: 09/15/2015] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Ethanol is a teratogen affecting numerous regions of the developing nervous system. The present study was undertaken to ascertain whether ethanol independently disrupts distinct signaling pathways or rather disrupts interactive pathways that regulate development of ethanol-sensitive tissues. METHODS Zebrafish embryos were exposed to ethanol in the absence or presence of aldh1a3 or Shh morpholino oligonucleotides (MOs), which disrupt retinoic acid (RA) or sonic hedgehog (Shh) function, respectively. Morphological analysis of ocular or midbrain-hindbrain boundary (MHB) development was conducted, and the ability to rescue ethanol and MO-induced phenotypes was assessed. In situ hybridization was used to analyze Pax6a expression during ocular development. RESULTS Chronic ethanol exposure, or combined ethanol and MO treatment, results in perturbed MHB formation and microphthalmia. While RA can rescue the MHB phenotype following ethanol combined with either MO, Shh mRNA is unable to rescue the disrupted MHB with combined ethanol and aldh1a3 MO treatment. RA also is unable to rescue microphthalmia induced by ethanol and Shh MO. CONCLUSION These studies demonstrate that while reduction of either RA or Shh signaling produces the same disruption of MHB or ocular development, that can be phenocopied using ethanol combined with either MO, RA overexpression can only rescue disrupted MHB, but not microphthalmia, in combined subthreshold Shh MO and ethanol. Our data suggest that MHB development may involve crosstalk between RA and Shh signaling, while ocular development depends on RA and Shh signaling that both are targets of ethanol in fetal alcohol spectrum disorders but do not depend on a mechanism involving crosstalk.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chengjin Zhang
- Julius L. Chambers Biomedical/Biotechnology Research Institute, North Carolina Central University, Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | - Ashley Anderson
- Department of Biological and Biomedical Sciences, North Carolina Central University, Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | - Gregory J Cole
- Julius L. Chambers Biomedical/Biotechnology Research Institute, North Carolina Central University, Durham, North Carolina, USA.,Department of Biological and Biomedical Sciences, North Carolina Central University, Durham, North Carolina, USA
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Abstract
The formation of the face and skull involves a complex series of developmental events mediated by cells derived from the neural crest, endoderm, mesoderm, and ectoderm. Although vertebrates boast an enormous diversity of adult facial morphologies, the fundamental signaling pathways and cellular events that sculpt the nascent craniofacial skeleton in the embryo have proven to be highly conserved from fish to man. The zebrafish Danio rerio, a small freshwater cyprinid fish from eastern India, has served as a popular model of craniofacial development since the 1990s. Unique strengths of the zebrafish model include a simplified skeleton during larval stages, access to rapidly developing embryos for live imaging, and amenability to transgenesis and complex genetics. In this chapter, we describe the anatomy of the zebrafish craniofacial skeleton; its applications as models for the mammalian jaw, middle ear, palate, and cranial sutures; the superior imaging technology available in fish that has provided unprecedented insights into the dynamics of facial morphogenesis; the use of the zebrafish to decipher the genetic underpinnings of craniofacial biology; and finally a glimpse into the most promising future applications of zebrafish craniofacial research.
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Stepicheva NA, Song JL. microRNA-31 modulates skeletal patterning in the sea urchin embryo. Development 2015; 142:3769-80. [PMID: 26400092 DOI: 10.1242/dev.127969] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2015] [Accepted: 09/03/2015] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
Abstract
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small non-coding RNAs that repress the translation and reduce the stability of target mRNAs in animal cells. microRNA-31 (miR-31) is known to play a role in cancer, bone formation and lymphatic development. However, studies to understand the function of miR-31 in embryogenesis have been limited. We examined the regulatory role of miR-31 in early development using the sea urchin as a model. miR-31 is expressed at all stages of development and its knockdown (KD) disrupts the patterning and function of primary mesenchyme cells (PMCs), which form the embryonic skeleton spicules. We identified that miR-31 directly represses Pmar1, Alx1, Snail and VegfR7 within the PMC gene regulatory network using reporter constructs. Further, blocking the miR-31-mediated repression of Alx1 and/or VegfR7 in the developing embryo resulted in defects in PMC patterning and skeletogenesis. The majority of the mislocalized PMCs in miR-31 KD embryos did not express VegfR10, indicating that miR-31 regulates VegfR gene expression within PMCs. In addition, miR-31 indirectly suppresses Vegf3 expression in the ectoderm. These results indicate that miR-31 coordinately suppresses genes within the PMCs and in the ectoderm to impact PMC patterning and skeletogenesis. This study identifies the novel function and molecular mechanism of miR-31-mediated regulation in the developing embryo.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nadezda A Stepicheva
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Delaware, Newark, DE 19716, USA
| | - Jia L Song
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Delaware, Newark, DE 19716, USA
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Palmer DH, Kronforst MR. Divergence and gene flow among Darwin's finches: A genome-wide view of adaptive radiation driven by interspecies allele sharing. Bioessays 2015; 37:968-74. [PMID: 26200327 PMCID: PMC4659394 DOI: 10.1002/bies.201500047] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Abstract
A recent analysis of the genomes of Darwin's finches revealed extensive interspecies allele sharing throughout the history of the radiation and identified a key locus responsible for morphological evolution in this group. The radiation of Darwin's finches on the Galápagos archipelago has long been regarded as an iconic study system for field ecology and evolutionary biology. Coupled with an extensive history of field work, these latest findings affirm the increasing acceptance of introgressive hybridization, or gene flow between species, as a significant contributor to adaptive evolution. Here, we review and discuss these findings in relation to both classical work on Darwin's finches and contemporary work showing similar evolutionary signatures in other biological systems. The continued unification of genomic data with field biology promises to further elucidate the molecular basis of adaptation in Darwin's finches and well beyond.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniela H. Palmer
- Committee on Evolutionary Biology, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL
| | - Marcus R. Kronforst
- Committee on Evolutionary Biology, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL
- Department of Ecology & Evolution, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL
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Brenig B, Schütz E, Hardt M, Scheuermann P, Freick M. A 20 bp Duplication in Exon 2 of the Aristaless-Like Homeobox 4 Gene (ALX4) Is the Candidate Causative Mutation for Tibial Hemimelia Syndrome in Galloway Cattle. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0129208. [PMID: 26076463 PMCID: PMC4468193 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0129208] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2015] [Accepted: 05/06/2015] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Aristaless-like homeobox 4 (ALX4) gene is an important transcription regulator in skull and limb development. In humans and mice ALX4 mutations or loss of function result in a number of skeletal and organ malformations, including polydactyly, tibial hemimelia, omphalocele, biparietal foramina, impaired mammary epithelial morphogenesis, alopecia, coronal craniosynostosis, hypertelorism, depressed nasal bridge and ridge, bifid nasal tip, hypogonadism, and body agenesis. Here we show that a complex skeletal malformation of the hind limb in Galloway cattle together with other developmental anomalies is a recessive autosomal disorder most likely caused by a duplication of 20 bp in exon 2 of the bovine ALX4 gene. A second duplication of 34 bp in exon 4 of the same gene has no known effect, although both duplications result in a frameshift and premature stop codon leading to a truncated protein. Genotyping of 1,688 Black/Red/Belted/Riggit Galloway (GA) and 289 White Galloway (WGA) cattle showed that the duplication in exon 2 has allele frequencies of 1% in GA and 6% in WGA and the duplication in exon 4 has frequencies of 23% in GA and 38% in WGA. Both duplications were not detected in 876 randomly selected German Holstein Friesian and 86 cattle of 21 other breeds. Hence, we have identified a candidate causative mutation for tibial hemimelia syndrome in Galloway cattle and selection against this mutation can be used to eliminate the mutant allele from the breed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bertram Brenig
- Institute of Veterinary Medicine, Georg-August-University of Göttingen, 37077 Göttingen, Germany
| | - Ekkehard Schütz
- Institute of Veterinary Medicine, Georg-August-University of Göttingen, 37077 Göttingen, Germany
| | - Michael Hardt
- Landesuntersuchungsanstalt für das Gesundheits- und Veterinärwesen Sachsen, 04158 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Petra Scheuermann
- Landesuntersuchungsanstalt für das Gesundheits- und Veterinärwesen Sachsen, 04158 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Markus Freick
- Veterinary Practice Zettlitz, Straße der Jugend 68, 09306 Zettlitz, Germany
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Pamanji R, Bethu MS, Yashwanth B, Leelavathi S, Venkateswara Rao J. Developmental toxic effects of monocrotophos, an organophosphorous pesticide, on zebrafish (Danio rerio) embryos. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2015; 22:7744-53. [PMID: 25604565 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-015-4120-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/15/2014] [Accepted: 01/11/2015] [Indexed: 05/15/2023]
Abstract
The present study examined the response of zebrafish embryos exposed to different concentrations (10, 20, 30, 40, 50, and 60 mg/L) of monocrotophos under static conditions for 96 h. We found that mortality had occurred within 48 h at all test concentrations, later insignificant mortality was observed. Monocrotophos (MCP) can be rated as moderately toxic to the Zebrafish embryos with a 96-h median lethal concentration (LC50) of 37.44 ± 3.32 mg/L. In contrast, it greatly affected the development of zebrafish embryos by inducing several developmental abnormalities like pericardial edema, altered heart development, spinal and vertebral anomalies in a concentration-dependent manner. A significant percent reduction in length by 9-48% and heart beats by 18-51% was observed in hatchlings exposed to LC10 and LC50 concentrations at 96 h when compared to controls. The process of looping formation of heart at embryonic stage was greatly affected by the LC50 concentration of MCP. The neurotoxic potentiality of MCP was assessed by using a marker enzyme, acetylcholinesterase in both in vitro and in vivo experiments. MCP was found to be the most potent inhibitor of AChE in vitro with an IC50 value of 4.3 × 10(-4) M. The whole-body AChE enzyme activity in vivo was significantly inhibited during the exposure tenure with the maximum inhibition of 62% at 24 h.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rajesh Pamanji
- Biology Division, CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad, 500 007, India
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Pamanji R, Yashwanth B, Bethu MS, Leelavathi S, Ravinder K, Rao JV. Toxicity effects of profenofos on embryonic and larval development of Zebrafish (Danio rerio). ENVIRONMENTAL TOXICOLOGY AND PHARMACOLOGY 2015; 39:887-897. [PMID: 25796049 DOI: 10.1016/j.etap.2015.02.020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/23/2014] [Revised: 02/24/2015] [Accepted: 02/27/2015] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Abstract
The aim of the present study was to evaluate the developmental toxicity of profenofos to early developing Zebrafish (Danio rerio) embryos (4h post fertilization) in a static system at 1.0 to 2.25mg/L. Median lethal concentrations (LC50) of profenofos at 24-h, 48-h, 72-h and 96-h were determined as 2.04, 1.58, 1.57 and 1.56 mg/L, respectively. The hatching of embryos were recorded at every 12h interval and the median hatching time (HT50) was also calculated for each concentration. In a separate set of experiments, 96-h LC10 (0.74 mg/L) and LC50 (1.56 mg/L) concentrations were used to assess the developmental toxicity in relation to behavior, morphology, and interactions with the targeted enzyme acetylcholinesterase. Live video-microscopy revealed that the profenofos exposed embryos exhibited an abnormal development, skeletal defects and altered heart morphology in a concentration-dependent manner, which leads to alterations in the swimming behavior of hatchlings at 144-h, which indicate that developing zebrafish are sensitive to profenofos.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rajesh Pamanji
- Biology Division, CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad 500 007, India
| | - B Yashwanth
- Biology Division, CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad 500 007, India
| | - M S Bethu
- Biology Division, CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad 500 007, India
| | - S Leelavathi
- Biology Division, CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad 500 007, India
| | - K Ravinder
- Zebrafish Laboratory, Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Hyderabad 500 007, India
| | - J Venkateswara Rao
- Biology Division, CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad 500 007, India.
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40
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Evolution of Darwin's finches and their beaks revealed by genome sequencing. Nature 2015; 518:371-5. [PMID: 25686609 DOI: 10.1038/nature14181] [Citation(s) in RCA: 565] [Impact Index Per Article: 62.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2014] [Accepted: 12/31/2014] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
Darwin's finches, inhabiting the Galápagos archipelago and Cocos Island, constitute an iconic model for studies of speciation and adaptive evolution. Here we report the results of whole-genome re-sequencing of 120 individuals representing all of the Darwin's finch species and two close relatives. Phylogenetic analysis reveals important discrepancies with the phenotype-based taxonomy. We find extensive evidence for interspecific gene flow throughout the radiation. Hybridization has given rise to species of mixed ancestry. A 240 kilobase haplotype encompassing the ALX1 gene that encodes a transcription factor affecting craniofacial development is strongly associated with beak shape diversity across Darwin's finch species as well as within the medium ground finch (Geospiza fortis), a species that has undergone rapid evolution of beak shape in response to environmental changes. The ALX1 haplotype has contributed to diversification of beak shapes among the Darwin's finches and, thereby, to an expanded utilization of food resources.
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Square T, Jandzik D, Cattell M, Coe A, Doherty J, Medeiros DM. A gene expression map of the larval Xenopus laevis head reveals developmental changes underlying the evolution of new skeletal elements. Dev Biol 2014; 397:293-304. [PMID: 25446275 DOI: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2014.10.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2014] [Revised: 10/02/2014] [Accepted: 10/20/2014] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
The morphology of the vertebrate head skeleton is highly plastic, with the number, size, shape, and position of its components varying dramatically between groups. While this evolutionary flexibility has been key to vertebrate success, its developmental and genetic bases are poorly understood. The larval head skeleton of the frog Xenopus laevis possesses a unique combination of ancestral tetrapod features and anuran-specific novelties. We built a detailed gene expression map of the head mesenchyme in X. laevis during early larval development, focusing on transcription factor families with known functions in vertebrate head skeleton development. This map was then compared to homologous gene expression in zebrafish, mouse, and shark embryos to identify conserved and evolutionarily flexible aspects of vertebrate head skeleton development. While we observed broad conservation of gene expression between X. laevis and other gnathostomes, we also identified several divergent features that correlate to lineage-specific novelties. We noted a conspicuous change in dlx1/2 and emx2 expression in the second pharyngeal arch, presaging the differentiation of the reduced dorsal hyoid arch skeletal element typical of modern anamniote tetrapods. In the first pharyngeal arch we observed a shift in the expression of the joint inhibitor barx1, and new expression of the joint marker gdf5, shortly before skeletal differentiation. This suggests that the anuran-specific infrarostral cartilage evolved by partitioning of Meckel's cartilage with a new paired joint. Taken together, these comparisons support a model in which early patterning mechanisms divide the vertebrate head mesenchyme into a highly conserved set of skeletal precursor populations. While subtle changes in this early patterning system can affect skeletal element size, they do not appear to underlie the evolution of new joints or cartilages. In contrast, later expression of the genes that regulate skeletal element differentiation can be clearly linked to the evolution of novel skeletal elements. We posit that changes in the expression of downstream regulators of skeletal differentiation, like barx1 and gdf5, is one mechanism by which head skeletal element number and articulation are altered during evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tyler Square
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80309, USA.
| | - David Jandzik
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80309, USA; Department of Zoology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Comenius University in Bratislava, Bratislava, 84215, Slovakia
| | - Maria Cattell
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80309, USA
| | - Alex Coe
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80309, USA
| | - Jacob Doherty
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80309, USA
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Yekti APA, Hsu HJ, Wang WD. The Effect of Paclobutrazol on the Development of Zebrafish (Danio Rerio) Embryos. Zebrafish 2014; 11:1-9. [DOI: 10.1089/zeb.2013.0902] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
| | - Hwei-Jan Hsu
- Institute of Cellular and Organismic Biology, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Wen-Der Wang
- Department of BioAgricultural Science, National Chiayi University, Chiayi, Taiwan
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