Hox genes in development and beyond

Abstract

Hox genes encode evolutionarily conserved transcription factors that are essential for the proper development of bilaterian organisms. Hox genes are unique because they are spatially and temporally regulated during development in a manner that is dictated by their tightly linked genomic organization. Although their genetic function during embryonic development has been interrogated, less is known about how these transcription factors regulate downstream genes to direct morphogenetic events. Moreover, the continued expression and function of Hox genes at postnatal and adult stages highlights crucial roles for these genes throughout the life of an organism. Here, we provide an overview of Hox genes, highlighting their evolutionary history, their unique genomic organization and how this impacts the regulation of their expression, what is known about their protein structure, and their deployment in development and beyond.

Gastrulation-stage gene expression in Nipbl +/− mouse embryos foreshadows the development of syndromic birth defects

“…Hox genes are organized into chromosomal clusters that turn on expression in a wave-like temporal pattern, producing highly structured and sequential activation during development. Specifically, genes at the 5′ end of the cluster, known as anterior Hox genes, are activated early in development and progressively silenced as genes further forward the 3′ end (posterior Hox genes) are turned on ( 120 ). To investigate whether our data reflected this known pattern, we examined the Hoxb genes, as they were the most prominently expressed Hox genes at both LB and CC stages.…”

Extensive long-range polycomb interactions and weak compartmentalization are hallmarks of human neuronal 3D genome

“…Gene Ontology (GO) analysis shows that dot TFs are enriched with biological functions related to the organism development (Figure S15). Indeed, some dot TFs belong to gene families known to be involved in organism development, e.g., HOX 56 , SOX 57 and DLX 58 . Remarkably, the majority (119 out of 197) of dot TFs are associated with the Nervous System Development GO term (GO:0007399, hypergeometric test p-value = 3.2×10 -42 ).…”

Gastrulation-stage gene expression inNipbl+/-mouse embryos foreshadows the development of syndromic birth defects

“…Hox genes are organized into chromosomal clusters that turn on expression in a wave-like temporal pattern, producing highly structured and sequential activation during development. Specifically, genes at the 5’ end of the cluster, known as anterior Hox genes, are activated early in development, and progressively silenced as genes further forward the 3’ end (posterior Hox genes) are turned on ( 120 ). To investigate whether our data reflected this known pattern, we examined the Hoxb genes, as they were the most prominently expressed Hox genes at both LB- and CC-stage.…”

“…Specifically, genes at the 5' end of the cluster, known as anterior Hox genes, are activated early in development, and progressively silenced as genes further forward the 3' end (posterior Hox genes) are turned on (120). To investigate whether our data reflected this known pattern, we examined the Hoxb genes, as they were the most prominently expressed Hox genes at both LB-and CCstage.…”