Antagonists on the left flank
Article Abstract:
A number of research projects investigating left-right asymmetry in embryos have demonstrated how direct and antagonistic signals can work together. It has been found that Caronte, a gene related to Cerberus, a secreted protein most well-known in head development, is first expressed to the left of the node, a region situated at the head end of the earliest embryonic structure, the primitive streak. This gene is induced by Sonic hedgehog and repressed by the fibroblast growth factor. Its expression extends to the left lateral plate, where it induces expression of Nodal by antagonizing a sub-class of the transforming growth factor-beta family, the bone morphogenetic proteins.
Publication Name: Nature
Subject: Zoology and wildlife conservation
ISSN: 0028-0836
Year: 1999
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Hedgehog keeps to the left
Article Abstract:
The embryo has the same set of molecules for the growth and maintenance of asymmetry of organs as diverse as those used in the development of insect wings, vertebrate limbs and the spinal cord. A study conducted on chicken embryos indicates that genes such as 'goosecoid' and FGF4 are symmetrically expressed in the node and the activin receptor IIb is more prominent on the right side of the node, whereas in the Sonic hedgehog, the receptor is found on the left side. However, these findings cannot be generalized, as mammals and zebrafish are exceptions.
Publication Name: Nature
Subject: Zoology and wildlife conservation
ISSN: 0028-0836
Year: 1995
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On the other hand...
Article Abstract:
Yokoyama and colleagues report that the development of mice with a body plan that is the mirror image of normal mice is effected by insertional mutation. This phenomenon occurs in all homozygous mutants. There is a possibility that a single gene disrupts and is involved in several developmental processes.
Publication Name: Nature
Subject: Zoology and wildlife conservation
ISSN: 0028-0836
Year: 1993
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