Premium
Novel animal pole‐enriched maternal mRNAs are preferentially expressed in neural ectoderm
Author(s) -
Grant Paaqua A.,
Yan Bo,
Johnson Michael A.,
Johnson Diana L.E.,
Moody Sally A.
Publication year - 2014
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.24082
Subject(s) - ectoderm , biology , gastrulation , polarity in embryogenesis , endoderm , neural crest , blastula , germ layer , embryo , neural plate , embryogenesis , microbiology and biotechnology , neural development , neuroectoderm , cranial neural crest , mesoderm , neural fold , genetics , embryonic stem cell , gene , induced pluripotent stem cell
Background: Many animals utilize maternal mRNAs to pre‐pattern the embryo before the onset of zygotic transcription. In Xenopus laevis , vegetal factors specify the germ line, endoderm, and dorsal axis, but there are few studies demonstrating roles for animal‐enriched maternal mRNAs. Therefore, we carried out a microarray analysis to identify novel maternal transcripts enriched in 8‐cell‐stage animal blastomeres. Results: We identified 39 mRNAs isolated from 8‐cell animal blastomeres that are >4‐fold enriched compared to vegetal pole mRNAs. We characterized 14 of these that are of unknown function. We validated the microarray results for 8/14 genes by qRT‐PCR and for 14/14 genes by in situ hybridization assays. Because no developmental functions are reported yet, we provide the expression patterns for each of the 14 genes. Each is expressed in the animal hemisphere of unfertilized eggs, 8‐cell animal blastomeres, and diffusely in blastula animal cap ectoderm, gastrula ectoderm and neural ectoderm, neural crest (and derivatives) and cranial placodes (and derivatives). They have varying later expression in some mesodermal and endodermal tissues in tail bud through larval stages. Conclusions: Novel animal‐enriched maternal mRNAs are preferentially expressed in ectodermal derivatives, particularly neural ectoderm. However, they are later expressed in derivatives of other germ layers. Developmental Dynamics 243:478–496, 2014 . © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.