title: Neonatal lethality of LGR5 null mice is associated with ankyloglossia and gastrointestinal distension.
abstract: The physiological role of an orphan G protein-coupled receptor, LGR5, was investigated by targeted deletion of this seven-transmembrane protein containing a large N-terminal extracellular domain with leucine-rich repeats. LGR5 null mice exhibited 100% neonatal lethality characterized by gastrointestinal tract dilation with air and an absence of milk in the stomach. Gross and histological examination revealed fusion of the tongue to the floor of oral cavity in the mutant newborns and immunostaining of LGR5 expression in the epithelium of the tongue and in the mandible of the wild-type embryos. The observed ankyloglossia phenotype provides a model for understanding the genetic basis of this craniofacial defect in humans and an opportunity to elucidate the physiological role of the LGR5 signaling system during embryonic development.
authors.affiliation: Division of Reproductive Biology, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA 94305-5317, USA.
authors.forename: Hiroki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Morita
authors.forename: Sabine
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Mazerbourg
authors.forename: Donna M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Bouley
authors.forename: Ching-Wei
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Luo
authors.forename: Kazuhiro
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kawamura
authors.forename: Yoshimitsu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kuwabara
authors.forename: Helene
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Baribault
authors.forename: Hui
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Tian
authors.forename: Aaron J W
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Hsueh
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D001483:Base Sequence; D019465:Craniofacial Abnormalities / Q000235:genetics; D004247:DNA / Q000235:genetics; D005260:Female; D041981:Gastrointestinal Tract / Q000002:abnormalities; D018390:Gene Targeting; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D018345:Mice, Knockout; D010641:Phenotype; D043562:Receptors, G-Protein-Coupled / Q000172:deficiency* / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D014059:Tongue / Q000002:abnormalities*
chemical_list: C493597:Lgr5 protein, mouse; D043562:Receptors, G-Protein-Coupled; D004247:DNA