PUBLICATION

Molecular mechanism for cyclic generation of somites: Lessons from mice and zebrafish

Authors
Yabe, T., Takada, S.
ID
ZDB-PUB-151218-4
Date
2016
Source
Development, growth & differentiation   58(1): 31-42 (Review)
Registered Authors
Takada, Shinji
Keywords
Mesp, mouse, segmentation clock, somitogenesis, zebrafish
MeSH Terms
  • Animals
  • Embryo, Mammalian/embryology*
  • Embryo, Nonmammalian/embryology*
  • Mice
  • Morphogenesis/physiology*
  • Somites/embryology*
  • Zebrafish/embryology*
PubMed
26676827 Full text @ Dev. Growth Diff.
Abstract
The somite is the most prominent metameric structure observed during vertebrate embryogenesis, and its metamerism preserves the characteristic structures of the vertebrae and muscles in the adult body. During vertebrate somitogenesis, sequential formation of epithelialized cell boundaries generates the somites. According to the "clock and wavefront model," the periodical and sequential generation of somites is achieved by the integration of spatiotemporal information provided by the segmentation clock and wavefront. In the anterior region of the presomitic mesoderm, which is the somite precursor, the orchestration between the segmentation clock and the wavefront achieves morphogenesis of somites through multiple processes such as determination of somite boundary position, generation of morophological boundary, and establishment of the rostrocaudal polarity within a somite. Recently, numerous studies using various model animals including mouse, zebrafish, and chick have gradually revealed the molecular aspect of the "clock and wavefront" model and the molecular mechanism connecting the segmentation clock and the wavefront to the multiple processes of somite morphogenesis. In this review, we first summarize the current knowledge about the molecular mechanisms underlying the clock and the wavefront and then describe those of the three processes of somite morphogenesis. Especially, we will discuss the conservation and diversification in the molecular network of the somitigenesis among vertebrates, focusing on two typical model animals used for genetic analyses, i.e., the mouse and zebrafish. In this review, we described molecular mechanism for the generation of somites based on the spatiotemporal information provided by "segmentation clock" and "wavefront" focusing on the evidences obtained from mouse and zebrafish.
Genes / Markers
Figures
Expression
Phenotype
Mutations / Transgenics
Human Disease / Model
Sequence Targeting Reagents
Fish
Antibodies
Orthology
Engineered Foreign Genes
Mapping