title: Initiation of cyp26a1 Expression in the Zebrafish Anterior Neural Plate by a Novel Cis-Acting Element.
abstract: Early patterning of the vertebrate neural plate involves a complex hierarchy of inductive interactions orchestrated by signalling molecules and their antagonists. The morphogen retinoic acid, together with the Cyp26 enzymes which degrade it, play a central role in this process. The cyp26a1 gene expressed in the anterior neural plate thus contributes to the fine modulation of the rostrocaudal retinoic acid gradient. Despite this important role of cyp26a1 in early brain formation, the mechanisms that control its expression in the anterior neural plate are totally unknown. Here, we present the isolation of a 310-base-pair DNA element adjacent to cyp26a1 promoter, displaying enhancer activity restricted to the anterior neural plate of the zebrafish gastrula. We show that unlike that of cyp26a1, expression driven by this cyp26a1 anterior neural plate element (cANE) is independent of retinoic acid. Through deletion analysis, we identify a 12-nucleotide motif essential for cANE activity. A consensus bipartite binding site for SoxB:Oct transcription factors overlaps with this motif. Mutational analysis suggests that SoxB binding is essential for its activity. We discuss the contribution of this study to the elucidation of the regulatory hierarchy involved in early neural plate patterning.
authors.affiliation: CNRS, UMR 7622, Paris, France.|Sorbonne Universités, Université Pierre et Marie Curie, Institut de Biologie Paris-Seine (IBPS), Developmental Biology Laboratory, Paris, France.|Inserm, U1156, Paris, France.
authors.forename: Chunhong
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: CNRS, UMR 7622, Paris, France.|Sorbonne Universités, Université Pierre et Marie Curie, Institut de Biologie Paris-Seine (IBPS), Developmental Biology Laboratory, Paris, France.|Inserm, U1156, Paris, France.
authors.forename: Aline
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Stedman
authors.affiliation: CNRS, UMR 7622, Paris, France.|Sorbonne Universités, Université Pierre et Marie Curie, Institut de Biologie Paris-Seine (IBPS), Developmental Biology Laboratory, Paris, France.|Inserm, U1156, Paris, France.
authors.forename: Emmanuelle
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Havis
authors.affiliation: CNRS, UMR 7622, Paris, France.|Sorbonne Universités, Université Pierre et Marie Curie, Institut de Biologie Paris-Seine (IBPS), Developmental Biology Laboratory, Paris, France.|Inserm, U1156, Paris, France.
authors.forename: Isabelle
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Anselme
authors.affiliation: Developmental Biology, Institute Biology I, Faculty of Biology, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Daria
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Onichtchouk
authors.affiliation: CNRS, UMR 7622, Paris, France.|Sorbonne Universités, Université Pierre et Marie Curie, Institut de Biologie Paris-Seine (IBPS), Developmental Biology Laboratory, Paris, France.|Inserm, U1156, Paris, France.
authors.forename: François
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Giudicelli
authors.affiliation: CNRS, UMR 7622, Paris, France.|Sorbonne Universités, Université Pierre et Marie Curie, Institut de Biologie Paris-Seine (IBPS), Developmental Biology Laboratory, Paris, France.|Inserm, U1156, Paris, France.
authors.forename: Sylvie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Schneider-Maunoury
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D054258:Neural Plate / Q000378:metabolism*; D015027:Zebrafish / Q000378:metabolism*; D029961:Zebrafish Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D029961:Zebrafish Proteins