A regulatory network of two galectins mediates the earliest steps of avian limb skeletal morphogenesis.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The skeletal elements of vertebrate embryonic limbs are prefigured by rod- and spot-like condensations of precartilage mesenchymal cells. The formation of these condensations depends on cell-matrix and cell-cell interactions, but how they are initiated and patterned is as yet unresolved.

Results

Here we provide evidence that galectins, β-galactoside-binding lectins with β-sandwich folding, play fundamental roles in these processes. We show that among the five chicken galectin (CG) genes, two, CG-1A, and CG-8, are markedly elevated in expression at prospective sites of condensation in vitro and in vivo, with their protein products appearing earlier in development than any previously described marker. The two molecules enhance one another's gene expression but have

SUBMITTER: Bhat R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3042966 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature