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Review
. 2020 Jun;62(5):301-310.
doi: 10.1111/dgd.12660. Epub 2020 Mar 18.

The genetic program to specify ectodermal cells in ascidian embryos

Boqi Liu  1 , Yutaka Satou  1
Affiliations
Free article
Review

The genetic program to specify ectodermal cells in ascidian embryos

Boqi Liu et al. Dev Growth Differ. 2020 Jun.
Free article

Abstract

The ascidian belongs to the sister group of vertebrates and shares many features with them. The gene regulatory network (GRN) controlling gene expression in ascidian embryonic development leading to the tadpole larva has revealed evolutionarily conserved gene circuits between ascidians and vertebrates. These conserved mechanisms are indeed useful to infer the original developmental programs of the ancestral chordates. Simultaneously, these studies have revealed which gene circuits are missing in the ascidian GRN; these gene circuits may have been acquired in the vertebrate lineage. In particular, the GRN responsible for gene expression in ectodermal cells of ascidian embryos has revealed the genetic programs that regulate the regionalization of the brain, formation of palps derived from placode-like cells, and differentiation of sensory neurons derived from neural crest-like cells. We here discuss how these studies have given insights into the evolution of these traits.

Keywords: Ascidians; gene regulatory network; midbrain-hindbrain boundary organizer; neural crest; placodes; telencephalon.

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