Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 3, 2026
06:32
Isolation, Enrichment, and Maintenance of Medulloblastoma Stem Cells
Published on: September 2, 2010
Developmental pathways: Sonic hedgehog-Patched-GLI
D O Walterhouse1, J W Yoon, P M Iannaccone
1Department of Pediatrics, Northwestern University Medical School and the Children's Memorial Institute for Education and Research, Chicago, IL 60614 USA.
Environmental Health Perspectives
|March 4, 1999
Summary
Environmental exposures can disrupt developmental gene pathways, leading to birth defects and diseases. Understanding the Sonic hedgehog pathway is crucial for mitigating these risks and improving pregnancy outcomes.
Area of Science:
- Developmental biology
- Environmental toxicology
- Genetics
Background:
- Developmental pathways, crucial for establishing the body plan, involve coordinated gene networks.
- Disruptions in these pathways can lead to birth defects (dysmorphogenesis) and cancer.
- Environmental exposures are linked to adverse pregnancy outcomes, including offspring abnormalities and diseases.
Purpose of the Study:
- To highlight the importance of understanding developmental pathways in the context of environmental exposures.
- To identify key molecular players in developmental pathways affected by toxins.
- To illustrate how studying specific pathways can inform strategies for reducing poor pregnancy outcomes.
Main Methods:
- Focus on the Sonic hedgehog (SHH) signaling pathway as a model system.
- Analysis of the roles of SHH ligand, Patched (PTCH) and Smoothened (SMO) receptors, and GLI transcription factors.
- Examination of how environmental toxins may interfere with this pathway.
Main Results:
- The SHH pathway, involving SHH, PTCH, SMO, and GLI factors, is a critical developmental pathway.
- This pathway exemplifies how genetic alterations due to environmental exposures can impact development.
- The study provides a framework for understanding toxin-induced developmental disruptions.
Conclusions:
- Understanding critical developmental pathways like SHH is essential for environmental science.
- Mitigating adverse pregnancy outcomes requires knowledge of gene-environment interactions.
- The SHH pathway serves as a key example for studying the developmental consequences of environmental toxins.
Related Concept Videos
02:19Morphogenesis
Plant morphogenesis—the development of a plant’s form and structure—involves several overlapping developmental processes, including growth and cell differentiation. Precursor cells differentiate into specific cell types, which are organized into the tissues and organ systems that make up the functional plant.
03:14Notch Signaling Pathway
The Notch signaling pathway is a major intracellular signaling pathway that is highly conserved over a broad spectrum of metazoan species. It stands unique from other intracellular signaling mechanisms in animals because notch protein itself acts as the receptor as well as the primary signaling molecule.
The Notch gene came into the limelight in 1914 after the discovery that its mutation in Drosophila melanogaster leads to a serrated (or "notched") wing margin phenotype. It was not until 1985...
The Notch gene came into the limelight in 1914 after the discovery that its mutation in Drosophila melanogaster leads to a serrated (or "notched") wing margin phenotype. It was not until 1985...
02:33Hedgehog Signaling Pathway
The Hedgehog gene (Hh) was first discovered due to its control of the growth of disorganized, hair-like bristles phenotype in Drosophila, much like hedgehog spines. Hh plays a crucial role in the development of organs and the maintenance of homeostasis in both invertebrates and vertebrates. However, while Drosophila has only one Hh protein, mammals have multiple functional Hedgehog proteins - Sonic (Shh), Desert (Dhh), and Indian Hedgehog (Ihh). All of these homologous proteins have adapted to...
03:14Notch Signaling Pathway
The Notch signaling pathway is a major intracellular signaling pathway that is highly conserved over a broad spectrum of metazoan species. It stands unique from other intracellular signaling mechanisms in animals because notch protein itself acts as the receptor as well as the primary signaling molecule.
The Notch gene came into the limelight in 1914 after the discovery that its mutation in Drosophila melanogaster leads to a serrated (or "notched") wing margin phenotype. It was not until 1985...
The Notch gene came into the limelight in 1914 after the discovery that its mutation in Drosophila melanogaster leads to a serrated (or "notched") wing margin phenotype. It was not until 1985...