Xenopus
- Maternal Dead-end 1 promotes translation of nanos1 by binding the eIF3 complex
Summary: A novel translational regulatory mechanism is demonstrated for the vertebrate-specific germline RNA-binding protein Dnd1, which promotes nanos1 translation by directly interacting with the translational machinery and the mRNA itself.
- PDGF controls contact inhibition of locomotion by regulating N-cadherin during neural crest migration
Summary: PDGF-A and its receptor control Xenopus neural crest migration by promoting EMT and contact inhibition of locomotion, acting via N-cadherin regulation at early stages of development and working as chemoattractant later.
- The phosphatase Pgam5 antagonizes Wnt/β-Catenin signaling in embryonic anterior-posterior axis patterning
Summary: Pgam5 interacts with Dishevelled2 and is essential for head formation, and for establishing and maintaining the Wnt/β-Catenin signaling gradient that patterns the anterior-posterior body axis in Xenopus laevis.
- Folate receptor 1 is necessary for neural plate cell apical constriction during Xenopus neural tube formation
Summary: A folate receptor-dependent action promotes neural tube formation by facilitating the changes in neural plate cell shape that are required during neurulation.
- Stomach curvature is generated by left-right asymmetric gut morphogenesis
Highlighted Article: Left-right patterning creates morphogenetic differences between the left and right walls of the vertebrate foregut that generate the asymmetric curvature of the stomach.
- Genomic integration of Wnt/β-catenin and BMP/Smad1 signaling coordinates foregut and hindgut transcriptional programs
Summary: Genome-wide analysis of Wnt and BMP targets in the Xenopus gut endoderm reveals cooperation and crosstalk between these pathways through integration of Smad1 and β-catenin on cis-regulatory elements.
- High-throughput analysis reveals novel maternal germline RNAs crucial for primordial germ cell preservation and proper migration
Summary: RNA-sequencing analysis identifies 90 novel mRNAs that are enriched at the vegetal pole of Xenopus laevis oocytes, and reveals novel roles for some of these mRNAs in primordial germ cell development.
- An Epha4/Sipa1l3/Wnt pathway regulates eye development and lens maturation
Summary: The analysis of Xenopus loss-of-function mutants reveals that Sipa1l3 – a gene associated with congenital cataracts in humans – interacts with Epha4 signaling to regulate retinal and lens development.
- Conserved and novel functions of programmed cellular senescence during vertebrate development
Summary: Cellular senescence is an intrinsic part of the developmental programme in amphibians and has a conserved role in vertebrate organogenesis.