spacer gif spacer gif spacer gif spacer gif ARCHIVE ANNOUNCEMENT! spacer gif
QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced]


spacer gif
     Home     Help     Feedback     Subscriptions     Archive     Search     Table of Contents    

First published online 13 February 2008
doi: 10.1242/dev.013086

Development 135, 1097-1106 (2008)
Published by The Company of Biologists 2008
This Article
Right arrow Figures Only
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Supplementary Material
Right arrow All Versions of this Article:
dev.013086v1
135/6/1097    most recent
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Related articles in Development
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow reprints & permissions
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Chamberlain, C. E.
Right arrow Articles by McMahon, A. P.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Chamberlain, C. E.
Right arrow Articles by McMahon, A. P.

Notochord-derived Shh concentrates in close association with the apically positioned basal body in neural target cells and forms a dynamic gradient during neural patterning

Chester E. Chamberlain*, Juhee Jeong{dagger}, Chaoshe Guo{ddagger}, Benjamin L. Allen and Andrew P. McMahon§

Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, The Biolabs, Harvard University, 16 Divinity Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA.

§ Author for correspondence (e-mail: mcmahon{at}mcb.harvard.edu)

Accepted 15 December 2007

Sonic hedgehog (Shh) ligand secreted by the notochord induces distinct ventral cell identities in the adjacent neural tube by a concentration-dependent mechanism. To study this process, we genetically engineered mice that produce bioactive, fluorescently labeled Shh from the endogenous locus. We show that Shh ligand concentrates in close association with the apically positioned basal body of neural target cells, forming a dynamic, punctate gradient in the ventral neural tube. Both ligand lipidation and target field response influence the gradient profile, but not the ability of Shh to concentrate around the basal body. Further, subcellular analysis suggests that Shh from the notochord might traffic into the neural target field by means of an apical-to-basal-oriented microtubule scaffold. This study, in which we directly observe, measure, localize and modify notochord-derived Shh ligand in the context of neural patterning, provides several new insights into mechanisms of Shh morphogen action.

Key words: Shh, Morphogen, Neural tube pattern, Basal body, Primary cilium


Related articles in Development:

Illuminating Shh distribution and localisation

Development 2008 135: e603. [Full Text]  





© The Company of Biologists Ltd 2008