Recent progress in the technique of next generation sequencing has been remarkable in uncovering species‐specific developmental mechanisms even in non‐model animals. In this special issue, we focus on how morphological diversity or species‐specific unique morphology was evolutionarily brought about by acquisition of novel enhancer functions, which has been elucidated using analyses of developmental

Chordates comprise three major groups, cephalochordates (amphioxus), tunicates (urochordates), and vertebrates. Since cephalochordates were the early branching group, comparisons between amphioxus and other chordates help us to speculate about ancestral chordates. Here I summarize accumulating data from functional studies analyzing amphioxus cis‐regulatory modules (CRMs) in model systems of other chordate

A single‐celled fertilized egg develops into a complex, multicellular animal through a series of selection processes of developmental pathways. During these processes, regulatory genes exhibit spatiotemporally restricted expression under the control of the species‐specific genetic program, and dictate developmental processes from germ layer formation to cellular differentiation. Elucidation of molecular

In vertebrates, vertebral primordia, called somites, are formed from the head to the tail along the anteroposterior axis of the body during development. The presomitic mesoderm (PSM), which differentiates into somites, is formed by continuous supply of new cells derived from the caudal lateral epiblast (CLE), resulting in body axis posterior elongation. Previous studies of mutants identified genes

Biosystems are dynamic networks driven by cross‐scale interactions between molecules, cells, tissues, organs and organisms. Recent advances in our understanding of the spatiotemporal regulation and organization of biosystems have stimulated exploration of novel approaches to control and design biosystems at multiple biological scales. Such new approaches include artificial cell synthesis, generation

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is one of the leading causes of blindness in elderly individuals worldwide. Oxidative stress injury to retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells plays a major role in the pathogenesis of AMD. The purpose of this study was to observe the correlation between Hepcidin and neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD) and to further observe whether oxidative stress

Secreted proteoglycan molecule Tsukushi (TSK) regulates various developmental processes, such as early body patterning and neural plate formation by interacting with major signaling pathways like Wnt, BMP, Notch etc. In central nervous system, TSK inhibits Wnt signaling to control chick retinal development. It also plays important roles for axon guidance and anterior commissure formation in mouse brain

Specialized microenvironment, or neurogenic niche, in embryonic and postnatal mouse brain plays critical roles during neurogenesis throughout adulthood. The subventricular zone (SVZ) and the dentate gyrus (DG) of hippocampus in the mouse brain are two major neurogenic niches where neurogenesis is directed by numerous regulatory factors. Now, we report Akhirin (AKH), a stem cell maintenance factor in

Notch signaling is involved in the development of almost all organ systems and is required post-developmentally to modulate tissue homeostasis. Rare variants in Notch signaling pathway genes are found in patients with rare Mendelian disorders, while unique or recurrent somatic mutations in a similar set of genes are identified in cancer. The human genome contains four genes that encode Notch receptors

Notch signaling plays crucial roles in the control of cell fate and physiology through local cell-cell interactions. The core processes of Notch signal transduction are well established, but the mechanisms that fine-tune the pathway in various developmental and post-developmental contexts are less clear. Drosophila almondex, which encodes an evolutionarily conserved double-pass transmembrane protein

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) play essential roles in the regulation of gene transcription in carcinogenesis and metastasis via interacting with microRNA. In this study, we explored the expressions and functions of lncRNA KCNQ1OT1 and miR-185-5p in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) cells. KCNQ1OT1 expression in OSCC tissues and cells was examined by qRT-PCR. Small interfering RNAs against KCNQ1OT1

Wound epidermis (WE) and the apical epithelial cap (AEC) are believed to trigger regeneration of amputated appendages such as limb and tail in amphibians by producing certain secreted signaling molecules. To date, however, only limited information about the molecular signatures of these epidermal structures is available. Here we used a transgenic Xenopus laevis line harboring the enhanced green fluorescent

The green alga, Caulerpa lentillifera, is composed of a single cell with multiple nuclei, but it possesses structures analogous to leaves or fronds, stems or stolons, and roots or rhizoids. To understand molecular mechanisms involved in formation and function of these structures, we carried out RNA-seq analysis of fronds and stolons (including rhizoids). Taking advantage of the decoded genome of C

The respiratory system has ideal tissue structure and cell types for efficient gas exchange to intake oxygen and release carbon dioxide. This complex system develops through orchestrated intercellular signaling among various cell types, such as club, ciliated, basal, neuroendocrine, AT1, AT2, endothelial, and smooth muscle cells. Notch signaling is a highly conserved cell-cell signaling pathway ideally

Transgenic birds are commonly used for time-lapse imaging and fate mapping studies in developmental biology. When researchers use transgenic birds expressing fluorescent protein, they need to understand the integration site of the transgene in the genome and the intensity of fluorescence in the tissues of interest. In this study, we determined the integration site of the transgene and fluorescence

Chick embryo electroporation is a powerful tool for the introduction of transgenes into tissues of interest for the study of developmental biology. This method often uses Fast Green to visualize the injected area by staining the solution containing DNA green. Here, we show that Fast Green fluoresces in a red color after electroporation, suggesting that researchers need to be cautious when detecting

Macular fibrosis is a vital obstacle of vision acuity improvement of age-related macular degeneration patients. This study was to investigate the effects of interleukin 2 (IL-2) on epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), extracellular matrix (ECM) synthesis and transforming growth factor β2 (TGF-β2) expression in retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells. 10 μg/L IL-2 was used to induce fibrosis in RPE

Dental stem cells for dental pulp regeneration have become a new strategy for pulpitis treatment. Angiogenesis and neurogenesis play a vital role in the pulp-dentin complex regeneration, and appropriate growth factors will promote the process of angiogenesis and neurogenesis. Insulin-like growth factor-binding protein 5 (IGFBP5) is involved in the regulation of tooth growth and development. A previous

Biofilms are communities of tightly associated bacteria encased in an extracellular matrix and attached to surfaces of various objects, such as liquid or solid surfaces. Here we use the multi-channel wide field stereo fluorescence microscope to characterize growth of the Bacillus subtilis biofilm, in which the bacterial strain was triple fluorescence labeled for three main phenotypes: motile, matrix

Somatic stem/progenitor cells actively proliferate and give rise to different types of mature cells (active state) in embryonic tissues while they are mostly dormant (quiescent state) in many adult tissues. Notch signaling is known to regulate both active and quiescent states of somatic stem cells, but how it regulates these different states is unknown. Recent studies revealed that the Notch effector

Zebrafish have the ability to regenerate skeletal structures, including the fin, skull roof, and jaw. Although fin regeneration proceeds by epimorphic regeneration, it remains unclear whether this process is involved in other skeletal regeneration in zebrafish. Initially in epimorphic regeneration, the wound epidermis covers the wound surface. Subsequently, the blastema, an undifferentiated mesenchymal

Sea urchins are used as a model organism for research on developmental biology and gene regulatory networks during early development. Gene knockdown by microinjection of morpholino antisense oligonucleotide (MASO) has been used to analyze gene function in early sea urchin embryos. However, as the effect of MASO is not long lasting, it is impossible to perturb genes expressed during late development

Neural induction and patterning in vertebrates are regulated during early development by several morphogens, such as bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs) and fibroblast growth factors (FGFs). Ventral ectoderm differentiates into epidermis in response to BMPs, whereas BMP signaling is tightly inhibited in the dorsal ectoderm which develops into neural tissues. Here, we show that Cdc2-like kinase 2 (Clk2)

Primordial germ cells (PGCs) are reprogrammed into pluripotent embryonic germ cells (EGCs) under specific culture conditions, but the detailed mechanisms of PGC reprogramming have not yet been fully clarified. Previous studies have demonstrated that AKT, an important intracellular signaling molecule, promotes reprogramming of PGCs into EGCs. Because AKT likely inhibits p53 functions to enhance PGC

The recent development of genome editing technologies has enabled the creation of genome-edited animals, with alterations at the desired target locus. The clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) system is widely used for this purpose because it is simpler and more efficient than other genome editing technologies. The conventional methods for creation of genome-edited animals

Development of an embryo is driven by a series of molecular instructions that control the differentiation of tissue precursor cells and shape the tissues into major body parts. LIM homeobox 1 (LHX1) is a transcription factor that plays a major role in the development of the embryonic head of the mouse. Loss of LHX1 function disrupts the morphogenetic movement of head tissue precursors and impacts on

BACKGROUND Hirschsprung's disease (HSCR) is characterized by missing of enteric neurons in the terminal areas of the whole gut, which is causally related to poor proliferation of enteric neural crest cells (ENCCs). Our aim is to explore how miR-431-5p interacts with its target gene in regulation of proliferation of ENCCs in HSCR. METHODS Mouse model of HSCR was established by Benzalkonium chloride

The CRISPR-Cas9 technology has been a powerful means to manipulate the genome in a wide range of organisms. A series of GFP knocked-in (GFPKI ) Drosophila strains have been generated through CRISPR-Cas9-induced double strand breaks coupled with homology-directed repairs in the presence of donor plasmids. They visualized specific cell types or intracellular structures in both fixed and live specimen

Molecular biology has been led by various measurement technologies, and increased throughput has developed omics analysis. The development of massively parallel sequencing technology has enabled access to fundamental molecular data and revealed genomic and transcriptomic signatures. Nanopore sequencers have driven such evolution to the next stage. Oxford Nanopore Technologies Inc. provides a new type

Skin development is tightly temporally coordinated with its sensory innervation, which consists of the peripheral branches of the dorsal root ganglion (DRG) axons. Various studies suggest that the skin produces a long-range attractant for the sensory axons. However, the exact identity of the guidance cue(s) remains unclear. To reveal the detailed molecular mechanism that controls DRG axon guidance

Normal epithelial tissues often put anti-tumorigenic pressure on newly emerged oncogenic cells through cell-cell communications. In Drosophila epithelium, clones of oncogenic cells mutant for evolutionarily conserved apico-basal polarity genes such as scribble (scrib) and discs large (dlg) are actively eliminated when surrounded by normal cells. It has been reported that c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK)

Urodele amphibians and some fish are capable of regenerating up to a quarter of their heart tissue after cardiac injury. While many anuran amphibians like Xenopus laevis are not capable of such feats, they are able to repair lesser levels of cardiac damage, such as that caused by oxidative stress, to a far greater degree than mammals. Using an optogenetic stress induction model that utilizes the protein

It is thought that the spleen contains stem cells that differentiate into somatic cells other than immune cells. We investigated the presence of these hypothetical splenic cells with stem cell characteristics and identified adherent cells forming densely-packed colonies (Splenic Adherent Colony-forming Cell; SACC) in the spleen. Splenic Adherent Colony-forming Cell was positive for alkaline phosphatase

To elucidate the role of Hox genes in limb cartilage development, we identified the target genes of HOXA11 and HOXA13 by ChIP-Seq. The ChIP DNA fragment contained evolutionarily conserved sequences and multiple highly conserved HOX binding sites. A substantial portion of the HOXA11 ChIP fragment overlapped with the HOXA13 ChIP fragment indicating that both factors share common targets. Deletion of

The forebrain develops into the telencephalon, diencephalon, and optic vesicle (OV). The OV further develops into the optic cup, the inner and outer layers of which develop into the neural retina and retinal pigmented epithelium (RPE), respectively. We studied the change in fate of the OV by using embryonic transplantation and explant culture methods. OVs excised from 10-somite stage chick embryos