Neuroretina specification in mouse embryos requires Six3-mediated suppression of Wnt8b in the anterior neural plate.

ABSTRACT: Retinal degeneration causes vision impairment and blindness in humans. If one day we are to harness the potential of stem cell-based cell replacement therapies to treat these conditions, it is imperative that we better understand normal retina development. Currently, the genes and mechanisms that regulate the specification of the neuroretina during vertebrate eye development remain unknown. Here, we identify sine oculis-related homeobox 3 (Six3) as a crucial player in this process in mice. In Six3 conditional-mutant mouse embryos, specification of the neuroretina was abrogated, but that of the retinal pigmented epithelium was normal. Conditional deletion of Six3 did not affect the initial development of the optic vesicle but did arrest subsequent neuroretina specification. Ectopic rostral

SUBMITTER: Liu W 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2947236 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature