Lef1 plays a role in patterning the mesoderm and ectoderm in Xenopus tropicalis

Abstract

Tcf/Lef HMG box transcription factors are nuclear effectors of the canonical Wnt signaling pathway, which function in cell fate specification. Lef1 is required for the development of tissues and organs that depend on epithelial mesenchymal interactions. Here, we report the effects of lef1 loss of function on early development in X. tropicalis. Depletion of lef1 affects gene expression already during gastrulation and results in abnormal differentiation of cells derived from ectoderm and mesoderm. At tail bud stages, the epidermis was devoid of ciliated cells and derivatives of the neural crest, e.g. melanocytes and cephalic ganglia were absent. In the Central Nervous System, nerve fibers were absent or underdeveloped. The development of the paraxial mesoderm was affected; intersomitic boundaries were not distinct and development of the hypaxial musculature was impaired. The development of the pronephros and pronephric ducts was disturbed. Most striking was the absence of blood flow in lef1 depleted embryos. Analysis of blood vessel marker genes demonstrated that lef1 is required for the development of the major blood vessels and the heart.

DeepFace: Deep-learning-based framework to contextualize orofacial-cleft-related variants during human embryonic craniofacial development

“…Gene LEF1 is expressed in the neural crest 61 and plays a role in patterning the mesoderm and ectoderm in Xenopus . 62 In mice, Lef1 plays an important role in epithelial-mesenchymal transition during palatal fusion. 63 ZBTB14 belongs to the zinc-finger and BTB/POZ (broad-complex, tramtrack, and bric-a-brac/poxvirus and zinc-finger) domain-containing protein family, which regulates organ morphogenesis and development.…”

Coordinate involvement of Nodal-dependent inhibition and Wnt-dependent activation in the maintenance of organizer-specific bmp2b in zebrafish

“…Luciferase expression was repressed by co-transfection of zebrafish Smad3b (Jia et al, 2008) in Hep3B cells, suggesting that Nodal signaling inhibits bmp2b expression. While in HEK293 cells, luciferase expression was enhanced by co-transfection of human Lef1 which recruits b-catenin to Wnt target genes (Roel et al, 2009) (Fig. 3A), suggesting that canonical Wnt signaling promotes bmp2b expression.…”

Kidney regeneration: common themes from the embryo to the adult

“…Morpholino knockdown of Wnt4 reduces glomerular and tubule formation [149], whereas injections of increasing amounts of Wnt4 mRNA induce ectopic tubular structures [150]. Morpholino knockdown of the downstream Wnt/beta-catenin effector Lef1 in Xenopus tropicalis embryos also inhibited anterior tubulogenesis while decreasing the posterior expression of Pax2 [151]. Similarly, injection of a dominant-negative form of beta-catenin resulted in a dose-dependent inhibition of pronephric tubule formation [152].…”