
View larger version (95K):
[in a new window]
|
Fig. 1. Inhibition of interdigital apoptosis by treatment with SU5402. (A,B) Left side, control (A) and right side (B) treated chick leg autopodes vital stained with Neutral Red 48 hours after implantation of a SU5402-bead (arrow). (C,D) Interdigital apoptosis 12 hours after application of a BMP-bead (*) in a normal limb interdigit (C) and in an interdigit 24 hours after implantation of a SU5402-bead (arrow; D). Note the reduced apoptotic effect of BMPs in limbs previously treated with the FGF inhibitor. (E,F) Scanning electron micrographs showing the presence of soft tissue syndactyly 4 days after interdigital application of SU5402 (F); E is the left control autopod of the same embryo. (G-P) Micromass cultures of stage 25 progress zone mesoderm showing chondrogenesis by Alcian Blue staining after 5 days of incubation (G,I,K,M,O) or by in situ hybridization for the type II collagen gene expression after 4 days of incubation (H,J,L,N,P). Control untreated cultures (G,H) and cultures treated with Noggin (100 ng/ml; I,J); SU5402 (800 ng/ml; an FGF inhibitor; K,L); SU5402 and BMP7 (800 and 50 ng/ml respectively; M,N); and BMP7 (50 ng/ml; O,P). Note that chondrogenesis is intensely inhibited by Noggin (I,J versus G,H) but not by SU5402 (K,L versus G,H) and that addition of SU5402 does not inhibit the chondrogenic effect of BMP7 (M-N vs O-P). (Q,R) Digit morphology 3 days after implantation of only a SU5402-bead at the tip of digit 3 (Q) and after combined treatment of SU5402 and BMP7 (R). Note that in both cases digit outgrowth is blocked by the inhibition of FGFs, but the growth promoting effect of BMP7 on the cartilage is not blocked giving rise to a dramatically enlarged phalanx (R).
|