The molecular mechanism of body axis induction in jawless vertebrates may differ from that described in gnathostomes
In order to assess the conservatism of the induction mechanism in different evolutionary lines of vertebrates, the Laboratory of Molecular Basis of Embryogenesis carried out studies on the functional activity of Noggin genes in the lamprey as a representative of another, evolutionarily oldest group of vertebrates – cyclostomes (jawless). It turned out that despite the conservatism of the functional properties of the studied genes in experiments with amphibians, in whose embryos the lamprey Noggins are able to induce complete secondary body axes, a similar effect was not observed in the lamprey embryos themselves. These results may indicate differences in the mechanisms of major axis induction between gnathostomes and agnathans, opening new perspectives for research into the fundamental basis of this process. The results are published in International Journal of Molecular Sciences. Learn more
february 26