QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s):
Home     Help     Feedback     Subscriptions     Archive     Search     Table of Contents

First published online December 17, 2003
doi: 10.1242/10.1242/dev.00903

This Article Figures Only Full Text Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Lindgens, D. Articles by Technau, U. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Lindgens, D. Articles by Technau, U. Social Bookmarking                         What's this?

Hyzic, the Hydra homolog of the zic/odd-paired gene, is involved in the early specification of the sensory nematocytes

Molecular Cell Biology, Darmstadt University of Technology, Schnittspahnstraße 10, 64287 Darmstadt, Germany

^* Authors for correspondence (e-mails: technau{at}bio.tu-darmstadt.de and holstein{at}bio.tu-darmstadt.de)

Accepted 2 October 2003

Cnidaria are the first class of organisms in animal evolution with a nervous system. The cnidarian Hydra has two types of neuronal cell, nerve cells and nematocytes. Both differentiate from the same pool of pluripotent stem cells. Yet, the molecular regulation of neural differentiation in Hydra is largely unknown. Here, we report the identification of Hyzic, a homolog of the Zn-finger transcription factor gene zic/odd-paired, which acts as an early neural effector gene in vertebrates. We show, that Hyzic is expressed in the early nematocyte differentiation pathway, starting at the level of interstitial stem cells. Expression of Hyzic is restricted to the proliferative stages of nematoblasts. Hyzic acts before and possibly directly upstream of Cnash, a homolog of the proneural bHLH transcription factor gene achaete-scute, and of Nowa, an early nematocyte differentiation marker gene. Hyzic may determine stem cells to differentiate into nematocytes. Our data are consistent with a role of Hyzic in inhibiting nematocyte differentiation, by keeping committed nematoblast cells in the cell cycle. A similar role has been demonstrated for Zic genes in vertebrates. Our results suggest, that genetic cascades of neural development may be conserved from Hydra to vertebrates, indicating that the molecular regulation of neural development evolved only once.

Key words: Hydra, Nematocyte, Neural development, Neuronal differentiation, Zic, odd-paired, achaete-scute, Nowa

CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter    What's this?

This article has been cited by other articles:

				M. Miljkovic-Licina, S. Chera, L. Ghila, and B. Galliot Head regeneration in wild-type hydra requires de novo neurogenesis Development, March 15, 2007; 134(6): 1191 - 1201. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				C. Guder, S. Pinho, T. G. Nacak, H. A. Schmidt, B. Hobmayer, C. Niehrs, and T. W. Holstein An ancient Wnt-Dickkopf antagonism in Hydra Development, March 1, 2006; 133(5): 901 - 911. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]