Hox genes and region‐specific sensorimotor circuit formation in the hindbrain and spinal cord. Issue 12 (8th November 2013)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Di, Maria; Glover, Joel C.; Studer, Michèle
• Is Part Of: Developmental dynamics. Volume 242:Issue 12(2013:Dec.)
• Page Start: 1348
• Page End: 1368
• Publication Date: 2013-11-08
• Subjects: Morphogenesis -- Periodicals; Anatomy -- Periodicals; Anatomie -- Périodiques; Biologie du développement -- Périodiques; 571.833
• DOI: 10.1002/dvdy.24055
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1058-8388

Abstract

<abstract abstract-type="main"> <title> <x xml:space="preserve">Abstract</x> </title> <p>Homeobox (<italic>Hox</italic>) genes were originally discovered in the fruit fly <italic>Drosophila</italic>, where they function through a conserved homeodomain as transcriptional regulators to control embryonic morphogenesis. In vertebrates, 39 <italic>Hox</italic> genes have been identified and like their <italic>Drosophila</italic> counterparts they are organized within chromosomal clusters. <italic>Hox</italic> genes interact with various cofactors, such as the TALE homeodomain proteins, in recognition of consensus sequences within regulatory elements of their target genes. In vertebrates, <italic>Hox</italic> genes display spatially restricted patterns of expression within the developing hindbrain and spinal cord, and are considered crucial determinants of segmental identity and cell specification along the anterioposterior and dorsoventral axes of the embryo. Here, we review their later roles in the assembly of neuronal circuitry, in stereotypic neuronal migration, axon pathfinding, and topographic connectivity. Importantly, we will put some emphasis on how their early‐segmented expression patterns can influence the formation of complex vital hindbrain and spinal cord circuitries. <italic>Developmental Dynamics 242:1348–1368, 2013</italic>. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.</p> </abstract>