Neither MafA/L-Maf nor MafB is essential for lens development in mice.
The importance of the large Maf transcription factor family has been investigated in lens development in the chick, Xenopus and mammals. Previously we reported that c-maf-deficient mice exhibit severe defects in lens fibre cells. Here, we report the roles of other large Mafs, MafA/L-Maf and MafB, during mouse lens development. MafA/L-Maf and MafB were expressed in lens epithelial cells and fibre cells at E12.5 but had largely disappeared from the lens at E18.5. The lens of mafA-, mafB-deficient and mafA::mafB double-deficient mice developed normally. In c-maf-deficient mice, the pattern of expression of MafA and MafB differed from their expression in wild-type mice. Moreover, the expression of crystallin genes was unchanged in mafA-, mafB- and mafA::mafB double-deficient lens. These results indicate that c-Maf alone is essential for lens development, and that MafA/L-Maf and MafB are dispensable in mice.
Takeuchi
Takashi
T
Department of Anatomy and Embryology, Doctoral Program in Life System Medical Sciences, Graduate School of Comprehensive Human Sciences, University of Tsukuba, 1-1-1 Tennodai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8575, Japan.
Kudo
Takashi
T
Ogata
Kiyohito
K
Hamada
Michito
M
Nakamura
Megumi
M
Kito
Katsumi
K
Abe
Yasuhito
Y
Ueda
Norifumi
N
Yamamoto
Masayuki
M
Engel
James Douglas
JD
Takahashi
Satoru
S
D000818:Animals; D049109:Cell Proliferation; D002645:Chickens; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D007908:Lens, Crystalline / Q000196:embryology* / Q000378:metabolism; D051473:Maf Transcription Factors, Large / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D051258:MafB Transcription Factor / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D051379:Mice; D018345:Mice, Knockout; D051257:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-maf / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*
D051473:Maf Transcription Factors, Large; C495608:Maf protein, mouse; D051258:MafB Transcription Factor; C485160:Mafa protein, mouse; C490406:Mafb protein, mouse; D051257:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-maf