title: Sef is a feedback-induced antagonist of Ras/MAPK-mediated FGF signalling.
abstract: Fibroblast growth factors (FGFs) are pleiotrophic growth factors that control cell proliferation, migration, differentiation and embryonic patterning. During early zebrafish embryonic development, FGFs regulate dorsoventral patterning by controlling ventral bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) expression. FGFs function by binding and activating high-affinity tyrosine kinase receptors. FGF activity is negatively regulated by members of the Sprouty family, which antagonize Ras signalling induced by receptor tyrosine kinases. On the basis of similarities in their expression patterns during embryonic development, we have identified five genes that define a synexpression group -- fgf8, fgf3, sprouty2, sprouty4, as well as a novel gene, sef (similar expression to fgf genes). Sef encodes a conserved putative transmembrane protein that shares sequence similarities with the intracellular domain of the interleukin 17 receptor. Here we show that in zebrafish, Sef functions as a feedback-induced antagonist of Ras/Raf/MEK/MAPK-mediated FGF signalling.
authors.affiliation: Institut de Génétique et de Biologie Moléculaire et Cellulaire, CNRS/INSERM/ULP, BP 163, 67404 Illkirch cedex, CU de Strasbourg, France.
authors.forename: Maximilian
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fürthauer
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: Siew-Lan
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Ang
authors.forename: Bernard
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Thisse
authors.forename: Christine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Thisse
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D004625:Embryo, Nonmammalian / Q000502:physiology; D005346:Fibroblast Growth Factors / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; D006801:Humans; D017403:In Situ Hybridization; D020935:MAP Kinase Signaling System / Q000502:physiology*; D008565:Membrane Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D019908:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-raf / Q000378:metabolism; D016415:Sequence Alignment; D015027:Zebrafish; D029961:Zebrafish Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism*; D018631:ras Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D008565:Membrane Proteins; D029961:Zebrafish Proteins; C461960:il17rd protein, zebrafish; D005346:Fibroblast Growth Factors; D019908:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-raf; D018631:ras Proteins