title: A novel guanine exchange factor increases the competence of early ectoderm to respond to neural induction.
abstract: Inductive interactions between different cell layers have an extremely important role in early embryogenesis. One of the most intensively studied and best characterised of these is the induction of neural tissue from ectodermal cells by the dorsal mesoderm. The competence of ectodermal cells to respond to neural induction varies according to dorsal-ventral position; with dorsal ectoderm (much of which forms the neural plate) having a far higher competence. Here we show that overexpression of the nucleotide exchange factor lfc increases ectodermal competence for neural induction as well as the amount of neural tissue in the whole embryo. Lfc is expressed pan ectodermally soon after gastrulation and may respond to an early determinant of dorsal ectoderm.
authors.affiliation: Hubrecht Laboratory, Netherlands Institute for Developmental Biology, Utrecht, Netherlands.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Morgan
authors.forename: M H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Hooiveld
authors.forename: A J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Durston
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D055415:Bone Morphogenetic Protein 4; D019485:Bone Morphogenetic Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D002352:Carrier Proteins; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D004075:Diglycerides / Q000378:metabolism; D004475:Ectoderm / Q000502:physiology*; D004625:Embryo, Nonmammalian; D004627:Embryonic Induction / Q000235:genetics; D004817:Epidermis / Q000196:embryology / Q000502:physiology; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; D020662:Guanine Nucleotide Exchange Factors / Q000235:genetics; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009420:Nervous System / Q000196:embryology*; D009432:Neural Crest / Q000502:physiology; D011506:Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D064067:Rho Guanine Nucleotide Exchange Factors; D014981:Xenopus / Q000196:embryology / Q000235:genetics*; D029867:Xenopus Proteins; D000099176:Noggin Protein
chemical_list: D055415:Bone Morphogenetic Protein 4; D019485:Bone Morphogenetic Proteins; D002352:Carrier Proteins; D004075:Diglycerides; D020662:Guanine Nucleotide Exchange Factors; D011506:Proteins; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins; D064067:Rho Guanine Nucleotide Exchange Factors; D029867:Xenopus Proteins; D000099176:Noggin Protein; C577402:Arhgef2 protein, mouse; C525810:Bmp4 protein, mouse; C525812:bmp4 protein, Xenopus