Expression of neuronal antigens and related ventral and dorsal proteins in the normal spinal cord and a surgically induced open neural tube defect of the spine in chick embryos: an immunohistochemical study.
OBJECTIVE
The aims of this study were to elucidate the processes of neuronal differentiation and ventrodorsal patterning in the spinal cord of the chick embryo from embryonic day (E) 3 to E17 and to study the effect of a prenatal spinal open neural tube defect (ONTD) on these processes.


METHODS
Expression patterns of neuronal antigens (neuronal nuclear antigen, neurofilament-associated protein (NAP), and synaptophysin) and related ventral markers [sonic hedgehog, paired box gene (PAX)6, and islet-1], and dorsal markers (bone morphogenetic protein, Notch homolog 1, and PAX7) were investigated in the normal spinal cord and in a surgically induced spinal ONTD in chick embryos. Four normal and ONTD chick embryos were used for each antigen group.


CONCLUSIONS
There were no differences in the expression of neuronal and ventrodorsal markers between the control and ONTD groups. NAP and synaptophysin were useful for identifying dorsal structures in the distorted anatomy of the ONTD chicks.
Lee
Do-Hun
DH
Division of Pediatric Neurosurgery, Seoul National University Children's Hospital, Seoul, South Korea.
Phi
Ji Hoon
JH
Chung
You-Nam
YN
Lee
Yun-Jin
YJ
Kim
Seung-Ki
SK
Cho
Byung-Kyu
BK
Kim
Dong Won
DW
Park
Moon-Sik
MS
Wang
Kyu-Chang
KC
D000818:Animals; D019521:Body Patterning; D002642:Chick Embryo; D015870:Gene Expression; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000235:genetics; D009436:Neural Tube Defects / Q000196:embryology / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D013116:Spinal Cord / Q000196:embryology* / Q000378:metabolism*
D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins