Construction of a vertebrate embryo from two opposing morphogen gradients.
Development of vertebrate embryos involves tightly regulated molecular and cellular processes that progressively instruct proliferating embryonic cells about their identity and behavior. Whereas numerous gene activities have been found to be essential during early embryogenesis, little is known about the minimal conditions and factors that would be sufficient to instruct pluripotent cells to organize the embryo. Here, we show that opposing gradients of bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) and Nodal, two transforming growth factor family members that act as morphogens, are sufficient to induce molecular and cellular mechanisms required to organize, in vivo or in vitro, uncommitted cells of the zebrafish blastula animal pole into a well-developed embryo.
Department of Cell Biology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22908, USA.
Peng-Fei
PF
Xu
Nathalie
N
Houssin
Karine F
KF
Ferri-Lagneau
Bernard
B
Thisse
Christine
C
Thisse
D000818:Animals; D036703:Blastula / Q000502:physiology*; D019521:Body Patterning; D019485:Bone Morphogenetic Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D004625:Embryo, Nonmammalian / Q000502:physiology*; D047108:Embryonic Development; D005775:Gastrula / Q000502:physiology; D054262:Gastrulation; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; D009024:Morphogenesis; D055457:Nodal Protein / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000235:genetics; D015398:Signal Transduction; D015027:Zebrafish / Q000196:embryology* / Q000235:genetics; D029961:Zebrafish Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*
D019485:Bone Morphogenetic Proteins; D055457:Nodal Protein; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D029961:Zebrafish Proteins