Study of molecular mechanisms of salivary gland development by Snail family genes.

蜗牛家族基因Snail和Slug被鉴定为上皮间充质转化基因，在发育中的唾液腺上皮细胞中表达。在组织培养中，我们研究了蜗牛家族基因的敲除和过表达对唾液腺发育的影响。我们发现，Snail/Slug siRNA处理抑制了分枝发育，而Snail/Slug过表达则促进了分枝发育。这些数据表明，蜗牛和鼻涕在唾液腺的分枝发育中起着促进作用。

Snail family genes, snail and slug, which were identified as a epithelial mesenchymal transition, were expressed in epithelial cells of developing salivary glands. We examined the effect of gene-knock down and over-expression of snail family genes on development of salivary gland in explant culture. We found that branching development was inhibited by Snail/ Slug siRNA treatment and stimulated by Snail/ Slug over-expression. These data suggested that Snail and Slug plays stimulatory roles in branching development of salivary gland.