The Otx family.
Otx1 and Otx2, the murine homologs of the Drosophila orthodenticle gene, play a remarkable role in specification and regionalization of forebrain and midbrain. Recently, genetic approaches have indicated that OTD, OTX1 and OTX2 have retained reciprocal functional equivalence in evolution, whereas their regulatory control has been remarkably modified. This suggests that during the evolution of the vertebrate brain, regulatory changes modulating the transcriptional and translational control of pre-existing gene functions might have favored the establishment of new morphogenetic pathways.
Simeone
Antonio
A
MRC Centre for Developmental Neurobiology, New Hunt's House, 4th Floor, King's College London, Guy's campus, London Bridge, UK. antonio.simeone@kcl.ac.uk
Puelles
Eduardo
E
Acampora
Dario
D
D000818:Animals; D005075:Biological Evolution; D001921:Brain / Q000196:embryology; D018398:Homeodomain Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology; D051379:Mice; D005810:Multigene Family; D051857:Otx Transcription Factors
D018398:Homeodomain Proteins; D051857:Otx Transcription Factors; C497656:Otx1 protein, mouse; C497660:Otx2 protein, mouse