Axial Patterning in Embryogenesis, Regeneration, and Asexual Reproduction

0212773每一个在地球上行走的人都是从胚胎发育而来的。然而，许多动物，如海葵，可以通过三种替代的发育途径发育：从胚胎（胚胎发生），从成年人的一部分，已被损坏（再生），或从成年人的自主产生的分支（无性生殖）。海葵等动物的基因组中是如何编码三种交替的发育途径的？为什么像人类这样的动物缺乏这种发展的灵活性？这些基本问题的答案将来自于在分子水平上理解胚胎发生、再生和无性繁殖之间的相似性和差异。为此，Finnerty实验室将比较海葵在胚胎发生、再生和无性繁殖过程中特定轴向模式基因的作用。轴向图案化是动物的身体沿着其主轴沿着被分成不同区域的过程。例如，海葵相对简单的身体有三个主要区域：头部，中央身体柱和脚。重要的是，轴向模式化是胚胎发生、再生和无性繁殖过程中必须进行的过程。这项研究旨在揭示是否保守的分子机制是用来完成轴向图案在这些替代途径。将讨论以下具体问题。(1)在每个发育途径中，完成轴向模式化的基因是否相同？(2)基因表达的时间和空间模式在不同途径之间是一致的吗？(3)通过实验手段“关闭”一个给定的基因对胚胎发育有什么影响？为了解决问题一和二，几个同源框转录因子的表达将使用原位杂交和定量RT-PCR技术进行测定。为了解决问题三，基因表达将使用RNA干扰技术“沉默”。

0212773FinertyEvery person that has ever walked the earth developed from an embryo. However, many animals such as sea anemones can develop by three alternate developmental pathways: from an embryo (embryogenesis), from a piece of an adult that has been fragmented by injury (regeneration), or from an autonomously produced offshoot of an adult (asexual reproduction). How are three alternate developmental pathways encoded in the genomes of animals such as sea anemones? Why is this kind of developmental flexibility lacking in animals such as humans? Answers to these fundamental questions will come from understanding the similarities and differences between embryogenesis, regeneration, and asexual reproduction at the molecular level.Towards this end, the Finnerty lab will compare the roles of specific axial patterning genes in sea anemones during embryogenesis, regeneration, and asexual reproduction. Axial patterning is the process whereby an animal's body is divided into distinct regions along its primary axis. For example, the relatively simple body of a sea anemone has three main regions: a head, a central body column, and a foot. Importantly, axial patterning is a process that must be performed during embryogenesis, regeneration, and asexual reproduction. This study seeks to reveal whether conserved molecular mechanisms are used to accomplish axial patterning in these alternate pathways. The following specific questions will be addressed. (1) Are the same genes used to accomplish axial patterning in each developmental pathway? (2) Are the temporal and spatial patterns of gene expression consistent between pathways? (3) What are the consequences for embryogenesis of "turning off" a given gene by experimental means? To address questions one and two, the expression of several homeobox transcription factors will be assayed using the techniques of in situ hybridization and quantitative RT-PCR. To address question three, gene expression will be "silenced" using the technique of RNA interference.