First published online December 1, 2003
Development 130, 2606e (2003)
© The Company of Biologists Limited
Keep breathing: the role of Phox2b
The activity of internal organs is controlled by the autonomic nervous
system. On p. 6635,
Dauger et al. report that the transcription factor Phox2b is required for the
differentiation of the afferent relays of autonomic reflexes. They show that
the carotid body, a chemosensor organ, degenerates in Phox2b null
mice, as do the cranial ganglia, which constitute the primary visceral sensory
neurons. The central target of these neurons - the nucleus of the solitary
tract, which integrates all visceral information - fails to form at all. These
results help to establish Phox2b as a transcription factor required for the
formation of autonomic reflex pathways. In addition, because mice heterozygous
for Phox2b have respiratory defects similar to those seen in
congenital central hypoventilation syndrome (which correlates with
heterozygous mutations in PHOX2B), these results provide mechanistic
insights into this human syndrome.
Related articles in Development:
- Phox2b controls the development of peripheral chemoreceptors and afferent visceral pathways
- Stéphane Dauger, Alexandre Pattyn, Frédéric Lofaso, Claude Gaultier, Christo Goridis, Jorge Gallego, and Jean-François Brunet
Development 2003 130: 6635-6642.
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
