The expression of FoxG in the early development of the European river lamprey Lampetra fluviatilis demonstrates significant heterochrony with that in other vertebrates

Publication date: Available online 28 September 2019Source: Gene Expression PatternsAuthor(s): Galina V. Ermakova, Alexandr V. Kucheryavyy, Andrey G. Zaraisky, Andrey V. BayramovAbstractFoxG1, a member of the Fox/Forkhead family of winged helix transcription factors, plays key roles in the induction and spatial compartmentalization of the telencephalon in vertebrates. Loss- and gain-of-function experiments have established FoxG1 as a maintenance factor for neural progenitors and a crucial player in the specification of the ventral telencephalon (subpallium). For the first time in evolution, the telencephalon appeared in the ancestors of vertebrates, including cyclostomes. However, although FoxG1 homologues are present in cyclostomes (i.e., in lampreys and hagfishes), no systematic study of the spatial-temporal expression of FoxG1 during the embryonic development of these animals has been carried out. Given these findings, we have now studied FoxG1 spatial-temporal expression patterns in the early development of the European river lamprey Lampetra fluviatilis. We show that in contrast to other vertebrates, in which the expression of FoxG1 begins during neurulation, the expression of this gene in L. fluviatilis starts after neurulation, first at stage 21 (early head protrusion) in the area of the otic placodes and then, beginning from stage 22, in the telencephalon. Such heterochrony of FoxG1 expression in the lamprey may reflect the fact that in this basally divergent represen...

Source: Gene Expression Patterns - September 29, 2019 Category: Genetics & Stem Cells Source Type: research