title: Left-right asymmetric expression of dpp in the mantle of gastropods correlates with asymmetric shell coiling.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Various shapes of gastropod shells have evolved ever since the Cambrian. Although theoretical analyses of morphogenesis exist, the molecular basis of shell development remains unclear. We compared expression patterns of the decapentaplegic (dpp) gene in the shell gland and mantle tissues at various developmental stages between coiled-shell and non-coiled-shell gastropods.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We analyzed the expression patterns of dpp for the two limpets Patella vulgata and Nipponacmea fuscoviridis, and for the dextral wild-type and sinistral mutant lineage of the pond snail Lymnaea stagnalis. The limpets had symmetric expression patterns of dpp throughout ontogeny, whereas in the pond snail, the results indicated asymmetric and mirror image patterns between the dextral and sinistral lineages.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We hypothesize that Dpp induces mantle expansion, and the presence of a left/right asymmetric gradient of the Dpp protein causes the formation of a coiled shell. Our results provide a molecular explanation for shell, coiling including new insights into expression patterns in post-embryonic development, which should aid in understanding how various shell shapes are formed and have evolved in the gastropods.
authors.affiliation: Department of Earth & Planetary Science, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Tokyo, 113-0033, Japan. k.shimizu.bio14@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Keisuke
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Shimizu
authors.forename: Minoru
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Iijima
authors.forename: Davin He
authors.initials: DH
authors.lastname: Setiamarga
authors.forename: Isao
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Sarashina
authors.forename: Tetsuhiro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kudoh
authors.forename: Takahiro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Asami
authors.forename: Edi
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Gittenberger
authors.forename: Kazuyoshi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Endo