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

First published online 7 January 2004
doi: 10.1242/dev.00971

This Article Figures Only Full Text Full Text (PDF) OA All Versions of this Article: dev.00971v1 131/3/571    most recent 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 Murakami, M. S. Articles by Morrison, D. K. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Murakami, M. S. Articles by Morrison, D. K. Social Bookmarking                         What's this?

Morphogenesis during Xenopus gastrulation requires Wee1-mediated inhibition of cell proliferation

¹ Cellular Growth Mechanisms Section, Regulation of Cell Growth Laboratory, NCI-Frederick, Frederick, MD 21702, USA
² Developmental Signal Transduction Section, Regulation of Cell Growth Laboratory, NCI-Frederick, Frederick, MD 21702, USA
³ Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, The George Washington University Medical Center, 2300 I Street, NW, Washington, DC 20037, USA

^* Author for correspondence (e-mail: monicasmurakami{at}yahoo.com)

Accepted 21 October 2003

Major developmental events in early Xenopus embryogenesis coincide with changes in the length and composition of the cell cycle. These changes are mediated in part through the regulation of CyclinB/Cdc2 and they occur at the first mitotic cell cycle, the mid-blastula transition (MBT) and at gastrulation. In this report, we investigate the contribution of maternal Wee1, a kinase inhibitor of CyclinB/Cdc2, to these crucial developmental transitions. By depleting Wee1 protein levels using antisense morpholino oligonucleotides, we show that Wee1 regulates M-phase entry and Cdc2 tyrosine phosphorylation in early gastrula embryos. Moreover, we find that Wee1 is required for key morphogenetic movements involved in gastrulation, but is not needed for the induction of zygotic transcription. In addition, Wee1 is positively regulated by tyrosine autophosphorylation in early gastrula embryos and this upregulation of Wee1 activity is required for normal gastrulation. We also show that overexpression of Cdc25C, a phosphatase that activates the CyclinB/Cdc2 complex, induces gastrulation defects that can be rescued by Wee1, providing additional evidence that cell cycle inhibition is crucial for the gastrulation process. Together, these findings further elucidate the developmental function of Wee1 and demonstrate the importance of cell cycle regulation in vertebrate morphogenesis.

Key words: Wee1, Cell cycle, Gastrulation

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

This article has been cited by other articles:

				Z. Jin, E. Homola, S. Tiong, and S. D. Campbell Drosophila Myt1 Is the Major Cdk1 Inhibitory Kinase for Wing Imaginal Disc Development Genetics, December 1, 2008; 180(4): 2123 - 2133. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				Y. Budirahardja and P. Gonczy PLK-1 asymmetry contributes to asynchronous cell division of C. elegans embryos Development, April 1, 2008; 135(7): 1303 - 1313. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				S. Arai, K. Miyake, R. Voit, S. Nemoto, E. K. Wakeland, I. Grummt, and T. Miyazaki Death-effector domain-containing protein DEDD is an inhibitor of mitotic Cdk1/cyclin B1 PNAS, February 13, 2007; 104(7): 2289 - 2294. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				J. Heasman Patterning the early Xenopus embryo. Development, April 1, 2006; 133(7): 1205 - 1217. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				S. Y. Kim, E. J. Song, K.-J. Lee, and J. E. Ferrell Jr. Multisite M-Phase Phosphorylation of Xenopus Wee1A Mol. Cell. Biol., December 1, 2005; 25(23): 10580 - 10590. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				Z. Jin, E. M. Homola, P. Goldbach, Y. Choi, J. A. Brill, and S. D. Campbell Drosophila Myt1 is a Cdk1 inhibitory kinase that regulates multiple aspects of cell cycle behavior during gametogenesis Development, September 15, 2005; 132(18): 4075 - 4085. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				A. J. Ewald, S. M. Peyrot, J. M. Tyszka, S. E. Fraser, and J. B. Wallingford Regional requirements for Dishevelled signaling during Xenopus gastrulation: separable effects on blastopore closure, mesendoderm internalization and archenteron formation Development, December 15, 2004; 131(24): 6195 - 6209. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				P. Martin and S. M. Parkhurst Parallels between tissue repair and embryo morphogenesis Development, July 1, 2004; 131(13): 3021 - 3034. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]