Localization of Neuropeptide Gene Expression in Larvae of an Echinoderm, the Starfish Asterias rubens.

ABSTRACT: Neuropeptides are an ancient class of neuronal signaling molecules that regulate a variety of physiological and behavioral processes in animals. The life cycle of many animals includes a larval stage(s) that precedes metamorphic transition to a reproductively active adult stage but, with the exception of Drosophila melanogaster and other insects, research on neuropeptide signaling has hitherto largely focused on adult animals. However, recent advances in genome/transcriptome sequencing have facilitated investigation of neuropeptide expression/function in the larvae of protostomian (e.g., the annelid Platynereis dumerilii) and deuterostomian (e.g., the urochordate Ciona intestinalis) invertebrates. Accordingly, here we report the first multi-gene investigation of larval

SUBMITTER: Mayorova TD 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5130983 | biostudies-literature | 2016

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature