Coquillette, a sea urchin T-box gene of the Tbx2 subfamily, is expressed asymmetrically along the oral-aboral axis of the embryo and is involved in skeletogenesis.
Transcription factors of the T-domain family regulate many developmental processes. We have isolated from the sea urchin a new member of the Tbx2 subfamily: coquillette. Coquillette has a late zygotic expression whose localization is dynamic: at the blastula stage it is restricted to the aboral side of most of the presumptive ectoderm and endoderm territories and from gastrulation on, to the aboral-most primary mesenchyme cells. Perturbation of coquillette function delays gastrulation and strongly disorganizes the skeleton of the larva. Coquillette is sensitive to alteration of the oral-aboral (OA) axis and we identify goosecoid, which controls oral and aboral fates in the ectoderm, as a probable upstream regulator. Coquillette appears to be an integral part of the patterning system along the OA axis.
Croce
Jenifer
J
Unité de Biologie du Développement, UMR 7009, CNRS, Université Pierre et Marie Curie, Observatoire Océanologique, 06230, Villefranche-sur-Mer, France.
Lhomond
Guy
G
Gache
Christian
C
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D015152:Blotting, Northern; D019521:Body Patterning; D001846:Bone Development; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D018076:DNA, Complementary / Q000378:metabolism; D004475:Ectoderm / Q000378:metabolism; D004625:Embryo, Nonmammalian / Q000378:metabolism; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; D051956:Goosecoid Protein; D018398:Homeodomain Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis; D008094:Lithium / Q000494:pharmacology; D018021:Lithium Chloride / Q000494:pharmacology; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009532:Nickel / Q000494:pharmacology; D016376:Oligonucleotides, Antisense / Q000494:pharmacology; D010641:Phenotype; D010802:Phylogeny; D010957:Plasmids / Q000378:metabolism; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000378:metabolism; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D012097:Repressor Proteins; D012617:Sea Urchins / Q000196:embryology*; D020825:T-Box Domain Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D013997:Time Factors; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology; D014158:Transcription, Genetic
D018076:DNA, Complementary; D051956:Goosecoid Protein; D018398:Homeodomain Proteins; D016376:Oligonucleotides, Antisense; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D012097:Repressor Proteins; C097348:T-Box Domain Protein 2; D020825:T-Box Domain Proteins; D014157:Transcription Factors; D009532:Nickel; D008094:Lithium; D018021:Lithium Chloride