PUBLICATION
Unique and conserved aspects of gut development in zebrafish
- Authors
- Wallace, K.N. and Pack, M.
- ID
- ZDB-PUB-030312-8
- Date
- 2003
- Source
- Developmental Biology 255(1): 12-29 (Journal)
- Registered Authors
- Pack, Michael, Wallace, Kenneth
- Keywords
- none
- MeSH Terms
-
- Alleles
- Animals
- Cell Polarity
- Digestive System/cytology
- Digestive System/drug effects
- Digestive System/embryology*
- Digestive System/growth & development
- Embryo, Nonmammalian
- Esophagus/embryology
- Ethanol/pharmacology
- Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental*
- Genetic Markers
- Hedgehog Proteins
- Liver/embryology
- Morphogenesis
- Mutation
- Pancreas/embryology
- Pharynx/embryology
- RNA, Messenger/genetics
- RNA, Messenger/metabolism
- Signal Transduction/genetics
- Trans-Activators/genetics
- Trans-Activators/metabolism
- Transcription Factors/genetics
- Transcription Factors/metabolism
- Veratrum Alkaloids/pharmacology
- Zebrafish/embryology*
- Zebrafish/genetics*
- Zebrafish Proteins/genetics
- Zebrafish Proteins/metabolism
- PubMed
- 12618131 Full text @ Dev. Biol.
Citation
Wallace, K.N. and Pack, M. (2003) Unique and conserved aspects of gut development in zebrafish. Developmental Biology. 255(1):12-29.
Abstract
Although the development of the digestive system of humans and vertebrate model organisms has been well characterized, relatively little is known about how the zebrafish digestive system forms. We define developmental milestones during organogenesis of the zebrafish digestive tract, liver, and pancreas and identify important differences in the way the digestive endoderm of zebrafish and amniotes is organized Such differences account for the finding that the zebrafish digestive system is assembled from individual organ anlagen, whereas the digestive anlagen of amniotes arise from a primitive gut tube. Despite differences of organ morphogenesis, conserved molecular programs regulate pharynx, esophagus, liver, and pancreas development in teleosts and mammals. Specifically, we show that zebrafish faust/gata-5 is a functional ortholog of gata-4, a gene that is essential for the formation of the mammalian and avian foregut. Further, extraembryonic gata activity is required for this function in zebrafish as has been shown in other vertebrates. We also show that a loss-of-function mutation that perturbs sonic hedgehog causes defects in the development of the esophagus that parallel those associated with targeted disruption of this gene in mammals. Perturbation of sonic hedgehog also affects zebrafish liver and pancreas development, and these effects occur in a reciprocal fashion, as has been described during mammalian liver and ventral pancreas development. Together, these data define aspects of digestive system development necessary for the characterization of zebrafish mutants. Given the similarities of teleost and mammalian digestive physiology and anatomy, these findings have implications for developmental and evolutionary studies as well as research of human diseases, such as diabetes, liver cirrhosis, and cancer.
Genes / Markers
Expression
Phenotype
Mutations / Transgenics
Human Disease / Model
Sequence Targeting Reagents
Fish
Orthology
Engineered Foreign Genes
Mapping