A missing link in the sea urchin embryo gene regulatory network: hesC and the double-negative specification of micromeres.

ABSTRACT: Specification of sea urchin embryo micromeres occurs early in cleavage, with the establishment of a well defined regulatory state. The architecture of the gene regulatory network controlling the specification process indicates that transcription of the initial tier of control genes depends on a double-negative gate. A gene encoding a transcriptional repressor, pmar1, is activated specifically in micromeres, where it represses transcription of a second repressor that is otherwise active globally. Thus, the micromere-specific control genes, which are the target of the second repressor, are expressed exclusively in this lineage. The double-negative specification gate was logically required from the results of numerous prior experiments, but the identity of the gene encoding the second repress

SUBMITTER: Revilla-i-Domingo R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC1941478 | biostudies-literature | 2007 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature