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Pharmacological evidence for the role of RAR in axon guidance and embryonic development of a protostome species
Author(s) -
Johnson Alysha,
Hoog Eric,
Tolentino Michael,
Nasser Tamara,
Spencer Gaynor E.
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
genesis
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.093
H-Index - 110
eISSN - 1526-968X
pISSN - 1526-954X
DOI - 10.1002/dvg.23301
Subject(s) - retinoic acid , biology , lymnaea stagnalis , vertebrate , retinoic acid receptor , microbiology and biotechnology , retinoid , ecology , genetics , snail , cell culture , gene
Summary Retinoic acid (RA), the active metabolite of vitamin A, functions through nuclear receptors, one of which is the retinoic acid receptor (RAR). Though the RAR is essential for various aspects of vertebrate development, little is known about the role of RAR in nonchordate invertebrates. Here, we examined the potential role of an invertebrate RAR in mediating chemotropic effects of retinoic acid. The RAR of the protostome Lymnaea stagnalis is present in the growth cones of regenerating cultured motorneurons, and a synthetic RAR agonist (EC23), was able to mimic the effects of retinoic acid in inducing growth cone turning. We also examined the ability of the natural retinoids, all‐ trans RA and 9‐ cis RA, as well as the synthetic RAR agonists, to disrupt embryonic development in Lymnaea . Developmental defects included delays in embryo hatching, arrested eye, and shell development, as well as more severe abnormalities such as halted development. Developmental defects induced by some (but not all) synthetic RAR agonists were found to mimic those induced by addition of high concentrations of the natural retinoid isomers. These pharmacological data support a possible physiological role for the RAR in axon guidance and embryonic development of an invertebrate protostome species.