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First published online January 16, 2004

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Dissecting convergent extension

The extracellular polysaccharide Hyaluronan (HA) regulates cell proliferation, adhesion and migration by organising the extracellular matrix and participating with signal transduction pathways. Studies on HA tend to concentrate on its role in cancer, but Bakkers et al. (p. 525) now show that HA is required for the migration of several mesodermal cell types during vertebrate development. Convergent extension occurs during gastrulation: lateral cells move towards the dorsal side (convergence) and the dorsal axis extends (extension). Using zebrafish, the authors demonstrate that the HA synthase Has2 is required for dorsal convergence but not extension of the dorsal axis, confirming that, although they are closely linked, convergence and extension are independent. In addition, the Has2 enzyme reaction product – probably HA – activates the small GTPase Rac1. This results in lamellipodia formation and the subsequent migration of has2-expressing cells, indicating that HA has an autocrine and instructive, rather than a structural, role during cell migration.

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Related articles in Development:

Has2 is required upstream of Rac1 to govern dorsal migration of lateral cells during zebrafish gastrulation

Jeroen Bakkers, Carina Kramer, Joris Pothof, Nicolette E. M. Quaedvlieg, Herman P. Spaink, and Matthias Hammerschmidt
Development 2004 131: 525-537. [Abstract] [Full Text]  

This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Related articles in Development Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Search for Related Content Social Bookmarking                         What's this?