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Effects of FK506 and rapamycin on formation of the neural tube in chick embryos
Author(s) -
OBATA Koji,
KOIDE Masafumi,
NAGATA Kohzo,
IIO Akio,
YAZAWA Shigenobu,
ONO Tamao,
SASAKI Shinichi,
YAMADA Yoshiji,
TUAN Rocky S.,
YOKOTA Mitsuhiro
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
animal science journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.606
H-Index - 38
eISSN - 1740-0929
pISSN - 1344-3941
DOI - 10.1046/j.1344-3941.2002.00032.x
Subject(s) - neural tube , fkbp , calcineurin , microbiology and biotechnology , biology , embryogenesis , embryo , in situ hybridization , neural development , nervous system , messenger rna , embryonic stem cell , transplantation , medicine , neuroscience , biochemistry , gene
FK506‐binding protein 12 (FKBP12) is an evolutionarily conserved immunophilin that binds the immunosuppressants FK506 and rapamycin. The physiological roles of this protein, however, remain unclear. The possible function of FKBP12 in embryonic development was investigated by examining the distribution of FKBP12 mRNA in chick embryos by whole‐mount in situ hybridization. The FKBP12 transcripts were detected at early stages of embryonic development, being especially abundant in the somites, heart tube and nervous system. Transcripts were also enriched in the neural fold, especially at the edge of this structure. Treatment of early embryos with rapamycin resulted in failure of neural tube closure, whereas treatment with FK506 had no such effect, suggesting that the FKBP12–rapamycin complex interferes with the formation of the neural tube. Given that rapamycin inhibits mitogenic signaling pathways, the FKBP12–rapamycin complex might disrupt mitosis during the formation of the neural tube. The lack of effect of FK506 on neural tube formation suggests that calcineurin signaling does not contribute to the formation of this structure during chick embryogenesis.