Passini M A, Kurtzman A L, Canger A K, Asch W S, Wray G A, Raymond P A, Schechter N
Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, State University of New York at Stony Brook 11794,
Dev Genet. 1998;23(2):128-41. doi: 10.1002/(SICI)1520-6408(1998)23:2<128::AID-DVG5>3.0.CO;2-8.
vsx1 is a homeobox gene encoding a paired-type homeodomain and a CVC domain that was originally cloned from an adult goldfish retinal library. We previously reported the spatiotemporal expression pattern of vsx1 in the adult and developing retina of zebrafish and goldfish, and we suggested that vsx1 plays a role in determining the cell fate and maintenance of retinal interneurons. Other related genes encoding a CVC domain, such as vsx2 (alx) and chx10, are expressed both within and outside the retina during development. In this study, we report the cloning of zebrafish vsx1 and its developmental expression in both retinal and nonretinal regions of the CNS in zebrafish embryos. vsx1 expression was detected in a subset of hindbrain and spinal cord neurons before it was expressed in the retina. At about the same time that retinal expression began, the level of vsx1 was decreased in the spinal cord. The expression of vsx1 was progressively restricted, and eventually it was detected only in the inner nuclear layer (INL) of the developing retina. The combined expression patterns of teleost vsx1 and vsx2 (alx) during early zebrafish development encompasses the expression pattern observed for murine Chx10, and indicates a partitioning of function for CVC genes in lower vertebrates.
vsx1是一个同源框基因，编码一个配对型同源结构域和一个CVC结构域，最初是从成年金鱼视网膜文库中克隆出来的。我们之前报道了vsx1在斑马鱼和金鱼成年及发育中的视网膜中的时空表达模式，并提出vsx1在决定视网膜中间神经元的细胞命运和维持方面发挥作用。其他编码CVC结构域的相关基因，如vsx2（alx）和chx10，在发育过程中在视网膜内外均有表达。在本研究中，我们报道了斑马鱼vsx1的克隆及其在斑马鱼胚胎中枢神经系统视网膜和非视网膜区域的发育表达。在vsx1在视网膜中表达之前，在后脑和脊髓神经元的一个亚群中检测到了其表达。在视网膜表达开始的大约同一时间，脊髓中vsx1的水平下降。vsx1的表达逐渐受到限制，最终仅在发育中的视网膜内核层（INL）中检测到。硬骨鱼vsx1和vsx2（alx）在斑马鱼早期发育过程中的联合表达模式涵盖了小鼠Chx10所观察到的表达模式，并表明CVC基因在低等脊椎动物中存在功能划分。
