Laboratory of Molecular Cell Biology, Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 320 Yue Yang Road, Shanghai 200031, China.
Genes (Basel). 2011 Mar 24;2(2):298-312. doi: 10.3390/genes2020298.
Early embryonic development is a multi-step process that is intensively regulated by various signaling pathways. Because of the complexity of the embryo and the interactions between the germ layers, it is very difficult to fully understand how these signals regulate embryo patterning. Recently, pluripotent stem cell lines derived from different developmental stages have provided an in vitro system for investigating molecular mechanisms regulating cell fate decisions. In this review, we summarize the major functions of the BMP, FGF, Nodal and Wnt signaling pathways, which have well-established roles in vertebrate embryogenesis. Then, we highlight recent studies in pluripotent stem cells that have revealed the stage-specific roles of BMP，FGF and Nodal pathways during neural differentiation. These findings enhance our understanding of the stepwise regulation of embryo patterning by particular signaling pathways and provide new insight into the mechanisms underlying early embryonic development.
早期胚胎发育是一个多步骤的过程，受到各种信号通路的严格调控。由于胚胎的复杂性和胚层之间的相互作用，要完全理解这些信号如何调节胚胎模式形成是非常困难的。最近，来自不同发育阶段的多能干细胞系为研究调节细胞命运决定的分子机制提供了体外系统。在这篇综述中，我们总结了 BMP、FGF、Nodal 和 Wnt 信号通路的主要功能，这些通路在脊椎动物胚胎发生中具有明确的作用。然后，我们强调了多能干细胞中最近的研究结果，这些研究结果揭示了 BMP、FGF 和 Nodal 通路在神经分化过程中的阶段特异性作用。这些发现增强了我们对特定信号通路对胚胎模式形成的逐步调节的理解，并为早期胚胎发育的机制提供了新的见解。
