Neural crest cells organize the eye via TGF-β and canonical Wnt signalling

Grocott, Timothy, Johnson, Samuel, Bailey, Andrew P. and Streit, Andrea (2011) Neural crest cells organize the eye via TGF-β and canonical Wnt signalling. Nature Communications, 2. ISSN 2041-1723

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Abstract

In vertebrates, the lens and retina arise from different embryonic tissues raising the question of how they are aligned to form a functional eye. Neural crest cells are crucial for this process: in their absence, ectopic lenses develop far from the retina. Here we show, using the chick as a model system, that neural crest-derived transforming growth factor-ßs activate both Smad3 and canonical Wnt signalling in the adjacent ectoderm to position the lens next to the retina. They do so by controlling Pax6 activity: although Smad3 may inhibit Pax6 protein function, its sustained downregulation requires transcriptional repression by Wnt-initiated ß-catenin. We propose that the same neural crest-dependent signalling mechanism is used repeatedly to integrate different components of the eye and suggest a general role for the neural crest in coordinating central and peripheral parts of the sensory nervous system.

Item Type:	Article
Faculty \ School:	Faculty of Science > School of Biological Sciences
UEA Research Groups:	Faculty of Science > Research Groups > Cells and Tissues
Depositing User:	Users 2731 not found.
Date Deposited:	24 Jan 2012 15:36
Last Modified:	12 Oct 2025 11:31
URI:	https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/36458
DOI:	10.1038/ncomms1269

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