Siva plays a critical role in mouse embryonic development.

ABSTRACT: The Siva protein, named after the Hindu God of Destruction, plays important roles in apoptosis in various contexts, including downstream of death receptor activation or p53 tumor suppressor engagement. The function of Siva in organismal development and homeostasis, however, has remained uncharacterized. Here, we generate Siva knockout mice to characterize the physiological function of Siva in vivo. Interestingly, we find that Siva deficiency causes early embryonic lethality accompanied by multiple phenotypes, including developmental delay, abnormal neural tube closure, and defective placenta and yolk sac formation. Examination of Siva expression during embryogenesis shows that Siva is expressed in both embryonic and extra-embryonic tissues, including within the mesoderm, which may explain

SUBMITTER: Jacobs SBR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7205994 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature