Differentiation of the Vertebrate Retina Is Coordinated by an FGF Signaling Center

In vertebrates, midline-derived sonic hedgehog and nodal are crucial for the initial proximal-distal patterning of the eye. The establishment of the distal optic stalk is in turn a prerequisite to initiate retinogenesis. However, the signal that activates this process is unknown. Here, we demonstrat...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Developmental cell 2005-04, Vol.8 (4), p.565-574
Main Authors: Martinez-Morales, Juan-Ramon, Del Bene, Filippo, Nica, Gabriela, Hammerschmidt, Matthias, Bovolenta, Paola, Wittbrodt, Joachim
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Biological and medical sciences
Cell Differentiation - physiology
Cell differentiation, maturation, development, hematopoiesis
Cell physiology
Chick Embryo
Fibroblast Growth Factors - genetics
Fibroblast Growth Factors - metabolism
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
In Situ Hybridization
Molecular and cellular biology
Morphogenesis - physiology
Retina - cytology
Retina - growth & development
Retina - metabolism
Signal Transduction - physiology
Zebrafish - embryology
Zebrafish Proteins - genetics
Zebrafish Proteins - metabolism
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:In vertebrates, midline-derived sonic hedgehog and nodal are crucial for the initial proximal-distal patterning of the eye. The establishment of the distal optic stalk is in turn a prerequisite to initiate retinogenesis. However, the signal that activates this process is unknown. Here, we demonstrate that in both chick and fish, the initiation of retinal differentiation is triggered by a species-specific localized Fgf signaling center that acts as mediator of the midline signals. The concerted activity of Fgf8 and Fgf3 is both necessary and sufficient to coordinate retinal differentiation independent of the connecting optic stalk.
ISSN:1534-5807
1878-1551
DOI:10.1016/j.devcel.2005.01.022