astray, a zebrafish roundabout homolog required for retinal axon guidance

Abstract

As growing retinotectal axons navigate from the eye to the tectum, they sense guidance molecules distributed along the optic pathway. Mutations in the zebrafish astray gene severely disrupt retinal axon guidance, causing anterior-posterior pathfinding defects, excessive midline crossing, and defasciculation of the retinal projection. Eye transplantation experiments show that astray function is required in the eye. We identify astray as zebrafish robo2, a member of the Roundabout family of axon guidance receptors. Retinal ganglion cells express robo2 as they extend axons. Thus, robo2 is required for multiple axon guidance decisions during establishment of the vertebrate visual projection.