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Prickle1, a gene that determines the internal and external structure of mouse embryos
(2009.08.11)
The shape of all organisms' bodies originates as the simple sphere of a single fertilized cell. The cells multiply and undergo complex processes to form the respective shapes of various living things. Using mice, the research group of Hirotaka Tao and Professor Naoto Ueno of the National Institute for Basic Biology's Division of Morphogenesis has proven the gene prickle1 is indispensable to the body's early development (immediately following implantation). The group found that disruption of the prickel1 gene in mouse embryos brought about early embryonic death due to the loss of the normally observed internal and external features of the epiblast's structure (precursor of the endoderm). This research was a collaborative effort between the National Institute for Basic Biology's Division for Morphogenesis and the Riken Institute of Physical and Chemical Research's Laboratory for Animal Resources and Genetic Engineering, Center for Developmental Biology. The results of this research were published online in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Early Edition on August 25th.