Ellen Sanders

Ocular Anterior Segment Dysgenesis upon Ablation of p120 Catenin in Neural Crest Cells

PURPOSE Development of the ocular anterior segment depends largely on periocular mesenchyme cells, which are derived predominantly from neural crest cells (NCC). Specific and differential cell adhesion is expected to be instrumental in induction, migration, and differentiation of NCC. As p120 catenin (ctn) is an important component of cadherin-catenin cell adhesion complexes, we assessed its role in development of the anterior segment structure. METHODS We generated conditional p120ctn(fl/fl);Wnt1Cre knockout mice and studied the effect of this gene ablation on eye development in vivo. In addition, p120ctn was knocked down in vitro. RESULTS Wnt1Cre-mediated deletion of floxed p120ctn alleles in NCC resulted in serious ocular anterior segment dysgenesis (ASD), including iridocorneal angle closure, complete anterior chamber obliteration, iris and ciliary body hypoplasia, corneal malformation and opacity, and glaucoma-like defects. A completely penetrant phenotype was visible approximately three weeks after birth, but histologic defects were obvious at embryonal day 18.5 (E18.5). Neither migration of NCC nor expression of key transcription factors appeared to be affected. In contrast, the N-cadherin expression pattern was changed significantly in iridocorneal angle cells and corneal endothelium. A human trabecular meshwork cell line in which p120ctn was knocked down also showed decreased expression levels of N-cadherin and β-catenin at the plasma membrane, but no defect in cell migration. CONCLUSIONS p120ctn has a critical role in ocular mesenchyme development. Loss of p120ctn and the associated N-cadherin downregulation in NCC leads to ASD without affecting cell migration. p120ctn abnormalities might have a role in the pathophysiology of mammalian eye development.

Whole Mount Immunohistochemistry and In Situ Hybridization of Larval and Adult Zebrafish Dental Tissues

Tooth development is increasingly being studied in a variety of vertebrate model organisms, each contributing its own perspective to our understanding of dental diversity. In situ hybridization and immunohistochemistry are well-established and frequently used techniques to study the presence of mRNA and protein. Here, we describe a protocol for whole mount immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridization that can be applied to all stages of zebrafish development and dissected bony parts. The description of these protocols is followed by the outline of a quick decalcification method and the procedure for embedding in epoxy resin to obtain serial sections with high histological quality.

Zebrafish teeth as a model for repetitive epithelial morphogenesis: dynamics of E-cadherin expression

BackgroundThe development of teeth is the result of interactions between competent mesenchyme and epithelium, both of which undergo extensive morphogenesis. The importance of cell adhesion molecules in morphogenesis has long been acknowledged but remarkably few studies have focused on the distribution and function of these molecules in tooth development.ResultsWe analyzed the expression pattern of an important epithelial cadherin, E-cadherin, during the formation of first-generation teeth as well as replacement teeth in the zebrafish, using in situ hybridization and whole mount immunostaining to reveal mRNA expression and protein distribution. E-cadherin was detected in every layer of the enamel organ during the different stages of tooth development, but there were slight differences between first-generation and replacement teeth in the strength and distribution of the signal. The dental papilla, which is derived from the mesenchyme, did not show any expression. Remarkably, the crypts surrounding the functional teeth showed an uneven distribution of E-cadherin throughout the pharyngeal region.ConclusionsThe slight differences between E-cadherin expression in zebrafish teeth and developing mouse and human teeth are discussed in the light of fundamental differences in structural and developmental features of the dentition between zebrafish and mammals. Importantly, the uninterrupted expression of E-cadherin indicates that down-regulation of E-cadherin is not required for formation of an epithelial tooth bud. Further research is needed to understand the role of other cell adhesion systems during the development of teeth and the formation of replacement teeth.

N-cadherin is Required for Cytodifferentiation during Zebrafish Odontogenesis

N-cadherin is a well-studied classic cadherin involved in multiple developmental processes and is also known to have a signaling function. Using the zebrafish (Danio rerio) as a model, we tested the hypothesis that tooth morphogenesis is accompanied by dynamic changes in N-cadherin distribution and that absence of N-cadherin disturbs tooth development. N-cadherin, encoded by the gene cdh2, is absent during the initiation and morphogenesis stages of both primary (first-generation) and replacement teeth, as demonstrated by immunohistochemistry. However, N-cadherin is up-regulated at the onset of differentiation of cells of the inner dental epithelium and the dental papilla, i.e., the ameloblasts and odontoblasts, respectively. In the inner dental epithelium, N-cadherin is co-expressed with E-cadherin, excluding the occurrence of cadherin switching such as observed during human tooth development. While early lethality of N-cadherin knockout mice prevents any functional study of N-cadherin in mouse odontogenesis, zebrafish parachute (pac) mutants, deficient for N-cadherin, survive beyond the age when primary teeth normally start to form. In these mutants, the first tooth forms, but its development stops at the early cytodifferentiation stage. N-cadherin deficiency also completely inhibits the development of the other first-generation teeth, possibly due to the absence of N-cadherin signaling once the first tooth has differentiated.

GC content of Early Metazoan genes and its impact on gene expression levels in mammalian cell lines

Abstract With the genomes available for many animal clades, including the early-branching metazoans, one can readily study the functional conservation of genes across a diversity of animal lineages. Ectopic expression of an animal protein in, for instance, a mammalian cell line is a generally used strategy in structure–function analysis. However, this might turn out to be problematic in case of distantly related species. Here we analyzed the GC content of the coding sequences of basal animals and show its impact on gene expression levels in human cell lines, and, importantly, how this expression efficiency can be improved. Optimization of the GC3 content in the coding sequences of cadherin, alpha-catenin, and paracaspase of Trichoplax adhaerens dramatically increased the expression of these basal animal genes in human cell lines.

20-P004 Ocular anterior segment dysgenesis following deletion of p120ctn in neural crest stem cells

ume changes were influencing cell movement. We also observed that the shape of the explant influenced the direction of cell migration. We propose that increased cell volume provides the driving impetus for the start of cell migration. The enlarged cells produce points of dislocations, which are determined by the physical constraints of the tissue, and that foreshadow and dictate the direction of cell movement.