Open AccessGonad morphogenesis and distal tip cell migration in the Caenorhabditis elegans hermaphrodite
Author(s) -
Wong MingChing,
Schwarzbauer Jean E.
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
wiley interdisciplinary reviews: developmental biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.779
H-Index - 45
eISSN - 1759-7692
pISSN - 1759-7684
DOI - 10.1002/wdev.45
Subject(s) - biology , morphogenesis , gonad , organogenesis , caenorhabditis elegans , microbiology and biotechnology , developmental biology , hermaphrodite , extracellular matrix , anatomy , genetics , gene , ecology
Cell migration and morphogenesis are key events in tissue development and organogenesis. In Caenorhabditis elegans , the migratory path of the distal tip cells determines the morphology of the hermaphroditic gonad. The distal tip cells undergo a series of migratory phases interspersed with turns to form the gonad. A wide variety of genes have been identified as crucial to this process, from genes that encode components and modifiers of the extracellular matrix to signaling proteins and transcriptional regulators. The connections between extracellular and transmembrane protein functions and intracellular pathways are essential for distal tip cell migration, and the integration of this information governs gonad morphogenesis and determines gonad size and shape. WIREs Dev Biol 2012, 1:519–531. doi: 10.1002/wdev.45 This article is categorized under: Establishment of Spatial and Temporal Patterns > Regulation of Size, Proportion, and Timing Early Embryonic Development > Development to the Basic Body Plan Invertebrate Organogenesis > Worms