PUBLICATION

Zebrafish sparse corresponds to an orthologue of c-kit and is required for the morphogenesis of a subpopulation of melanocytes, but is not essential for hematopoiesis or primordial germ cell development

Authors
Parichy, D.M., Rawls, J.F., Pratt, S.J., Whitfield, T.T., and Johnson, S.L.
ID
ZDB-PUB-990830-7
Date
1999
Source
Development (Cambridge, England)   126(15): 3425-3436 (Journal)
Registered Authors
Johnson, Stephen L., Parichy, David M., Pratt, Stephen J., Rawls, John F., Whitfield, Tanya T.
Keywords
neural crest; melanocyte; c-kit; Danio rerio; hematopoiesis; primordial germ cell; apoptosis; cell migration
MeSH Terms
  • Animals
  • Base Sequence
  • Biological Evolution
  • DNA Primers/genetics
  • DNA, Complementary/genetics
  • Female
  • Germ Cells/growth & development
  • Hematopoiesis/genetics
  • Male
  • Melanocytes/cytology*
  • Mice
  • Neural Crest/cytology
  • Phylogeny
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-kit/genetics*
  • Species Specificity
  • Zebrafish/embryology*
  • Zebrafish/genetics*
PubMed
10393121 Full text @ Development
Abstract
The relative roles of the Kit receptor in promoting the migration and survival of amniote melanocytes are unresolved. We show that, in the zebrafish, Danio rerio, the pigment pattern mutation sparse corresponds to an orthologue of c-kit. This finding allows us to further elucidate morphogenetic roles for this c-kit-related gene in melanocyte morphogenesis. Our analyses of zebrafish melanocyte development demonstrate that the c-kit orthologue identified in this study is required both for normal migration and for survival of embryonic melanocytes. We also find that, in contrast to mouse, the zebrafish c-kit gene that we have identified is not essential for hematopoiesis or primordial germ cell development. These unexpected differences may reflect evolutionary divergence in c-kit functions following gene duplication events in teleosts.
Genes / Markers
Figures
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Expression
Phenotype
Mutations / Transgenics
Human Disease / Model
Sequence Targeting Reagents
Fish
Antibodies
Orthology
Engineered Foreign Genes
Mapping