Role of Sp5 as an essential early regulator of neural crest specification in xenopus. Issue 12 (30th September 2013)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Park, Dong‐Seok; Seo, Jeong‐Han; Hong, Mina; Bang, Wonseon; Han, Jin‐Kwan; Choi, Sun‐Cheol
• Is Part Of: Developmental dynamics. Volume 242:Issue 12(2013:Dec.)
• Page Start: 1382
• Page End: 1394
• Publication Date: 2013-09-30
• Subjects: Morphogenesis -- Periodicals; Anatomy -- Periodicals; Anatomie -- Périodiques; Biologie du développement -- Périodiques; 571.833
• DOI: 10.1002/dvdy.24034
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1058-8388

Abstract

<abstract abstract-type="main"> <title> <x xml:space="preserve">Abstract</x> </title> <p> <underline>Background:</underline> The neural crest (NC) is a multipotent embryonic cell population, which is induced by an integration of secreted signals including BMP, Wnt, and FGF and, subsequently, NC cell fates are specified by a regulatory network of specific transcription factors. This study was undertaken to identify a role of <italic>Sp5</italic> transcription factor in vertebrates. <underline>Results:</underline><italic>Xenopus Sp5</italic> is expressed in the prospective neural crest regions from gastrulation through the tadpole stages in early development. Knockdown of <italic>Sp5</italic> caused severe defects in craniofacial cartilage, pigmentation, and dorsal fin. Gain‐ and loss‐of‐function of <italic>Sp5</italic> led to up‐ and down‐regulation of the expression of NC markers in the neural fold, respectively. In contrast, <italic>Sp5</italic> had no effect on neural induction and patterning. <italic>Sp5</italic> regulated the expression of neural plate border (NPB) specifiers, <italic>Msx1</italic> and <italic>Pax3</italic>, and these regulatory factors recovered the expression of NC marker in the <italic>Sp5</italic>‐deficient embryos. Depletion of <italic>Sp5</italic> impaired NC induction by Wnt/β‐catenin or FGF signal, whereas its co‐expression rescued NC markers in embryos in which either signal was blocked. <underline>Conclusions:</underline> These results suggest that <italic>Sp5</italic> functions as a critical early factor in the genetic cascade to regulate NC induction downstream of Wnt and FGF pathways. <italic>Developmental Dynamics 242:1382–1394, 2013</italic>. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.</p> </abstract>