OBJECTIVE To evaluate cellular hypertrophic activities in the mandibular condylar cartilage (MCC) and the glenoid fossa (GF) during mandibular advancement in the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) of Sprague-Dawley rats, as evidenced by fibroblast growth factor 8 (FGF8). METHODS AND MATERIALS Fifty-five female 24-day-old Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into four experimental and control ...

FGF signaling is required during multiple stages of inner ear development in many different vertebrates, where it is involved in induction of the otic placode, in formation and morphogenesis of the otic vesicle as well as for cellular differentiation within the sensory epithelia. In this study we have looked to define the redundant and conserved roles of FGF3, FGF8 and FGF10 during the developm...

Epithelial-mesenchymal interactions are essential for both limb outgrowth and pattern formation in the limb. Molecules capable of communication between these two tissues are known and include the signaling molecules SHH and FGF4, FGF8 and FGF10. Evidence suggests that the pattern and maintenance of expression of these genes are dependent on a number of factors including regulatory loops between...

The role of fibroblast growth factors (FGFs) in neural induction is controversial [1,2]. Although FGF signalling has been implicated in early neural induction [3-5], a late role for FGFs in neural development is not well established. Indeed, it is thought that FGFs induce a precursor cell fate but are not able to induce neuronal differentiation or late neural markers [6-8]. It is also not known...

In chick embryos homozygous for the limbless mutation, limb bud outgrowth is initiated, but a morphologically distinct apical ridge does not develop and limbs do not form. Here we report the results of an analysis of gene expression in limbless mutant limb buds. Fgf4, Fgf8, Bmp2 and Msx2, genes that are expressed in the apical ridge of normal limb buds, are not expressed in the mutant limb bud ...

The regionalization of the neural tube along the anteroposterior axis is established through the action of patterning signals from the endomesoderm including the organizer. These signals set up a pre-pattern which is subsequently refined through local patterning events. The midbrain-hindbrain junction, or isthmus, is endowed with such an organizing activity. It is able to induce graded expressi...

FGFs act in vertebrate mesoderm induction and also play key roles in early mesoderm formation in ascidians and amphioxus. However, in sea urchins initial characterizations of FGF function do not support a role in early mesoderm induction, making the ancestral roles of FGF signaling and mechanisms of mesoderm specification in deuterostomes unclear. In order to better characterize the evolution o...

Retroposons, such as short interspersed elements (SINEs) and long interspersed elements (LINEs), are the major constituents of higher vertebrate genomes. Although there are many examples of retroposons' acquiring function, none has been implicated in the morphological innovations specific to a certain taxonomic group. We previously characterized a SINE family, AmnSINE1, members of which constit...

The mes/metencephalic boundary (isthmus) is an organizing center for the optic tectum and cerebellum. Fgf8 is accepted as a crucial organizing signal. Previously, we reported that Fgf8b could induce cerebellum in the mesencephalon, while Fgf8a transformed the presumptive diencephalon into mesencephalon. Since lower doses of Fgf8b exerted similar effects to those of Fgf8a, the type difference co...

We analyzed a Japanese chick wingless mutant (Jwg) to know a molecular mechanism underlying wing development. We observed expression patterns of eleven marker genes to characterize the mutant. Expressions of dorsoventral (DV) and mesenchymal marker genes were intact in nascent Jwg limb buds. However, expression of Fgf8, a marker gene for the apical ectodermal ridge (AER), was delayed and shortl...