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Loss of adenomatous polyposis coli ( apc ) results in an expanded ciliary marginal zone in the zebrafish eye
Author(s) -
Stephens W. Zac,
Senecal Megan,
Nguyen Minhtu,
Piotrowski Tatjana
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
developmental dynamics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.634
H-Index - 141
eISSN - 1097-0177
pISSN - 1058-8388
DOI - 10.1002/dvdy.22325
Subject(s) - wnt signaling pathway , zebrafish , biology , axin2 , sox2 , microbiology and biotechnology , adenomatous polyposis coli , retina , pax6 , beta catenin , signal transduction , cancer research , genetics , gene , embryonic stem cell , neuroscience , transcription factor , colorectal cancer , cancer
The distal region of neural retina (ciliary marginal zone [CMZ]) contains stem cells that produce non‐neural and neuronal progenitors. We provide a detailed gene expression analysis of the eyes of apc mutant zebrafish where the Wnt/β‐catenin pathway is constitutively active. Wnt/β‐catenin signaling leads to an expansion of the CMZ accompanied by a central shift of the retinal identity gene sox2 and the proneural gene atoh7 . This suggests an important role for peripheral Wnt/β‐catenin signaling in regulating the expression and localization of neurogenic genes in the central retina. Retinal identity genes rx1 and vsx2 , as well as meis1 and pax6a act upstream of Wnt/β‐catenin pathway activation. Peripheral cells that likely contain stem cells can be identified by the expression of follistatin , otx1 , and axin2 and the lack of expression of myca and cyclinD1 . Our results introduce the zebrafish apc mutation as a new model to study signaling pathways regulating the CMZ. Developmental Dynamics 239:2066–2077, 2010. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.