Molecular characterization of the apical organ of the anthozoan Nematostella vectensis.

ABSTRACT: Apical organs are sensory structures present in many marine invertebrate larvae where they are considered to be involved in their settlement, metamorphosis and locomotion. In bilaterians they are characterised by a tuft of long cilia and receptor cells and they are associated with groups of neurons, but their relatively low morphological complexity and dispersed phylogenetic distribution have left their evolutionary relationship unresolved. Moreover, since apical organs are not present in the standard model organisms, their development and function are not well understood. To provide a foundation for a better understanding of this structure we have characterised the molecular composition of the apical organ of the sea anemone Nematostella vectensis. In a microarray-based comparison of the

SUBMITTER: Sinigaglia C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4300403 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature