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Related Experiment Videos

Single cells can sense their position in a morphogen gradient.

J B Gurdon1, H Standley, S Dyson

  • 1Wellcome CRC Institute, Tennis Court Road, Cambridge CB2 1QR and Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, UK. jbg1000@hermes.cam.ac.uk

Development (Cambridge, England)
|November 11, 1999
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

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Isolated Xenopus blastula cells individually sense activin concentration gradients. This study demonstrates that cell-cell interactions are not required for interpreting morphogen concentration, challenging previous hypotheses.

Area of Science:

  • Developmental Biology
  • Cell Signaling
  • Molecular Biology

Background:

  • Xenopus blastula cells exhibit a concentration-dependent response to activin, a key morphogen.
  • Understanding how cells interpret morphogen gradients is crucial for developmental processes.
  • Previous research suggested cell-cell interactions might be necessary for this interpretation.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate whether individual Xenopus blastula cells can respond to activin concentration gradients independently.
  • To determine if cell-cell communication is essential for interpreting morphogen concentration.
  • To differentiate between individual cell responses and collective cell behaviors in response to activin.

Main Methods:

  • Culturing Xenopus blastula cells with varying degrees of cell-cell contact (attached, unattached, reaggregate cultures).

Related Experiment Videos

  • Assaying the expression of activin-responsive genes (Xbra, Xgsc, Xeomes, Xapod, Xchordin, Mix1, Xlim1, Cerberus) using RNase protection and in situ hybridization.
  • Comparing gene expression patterns across different culture conditions.

    • Main Results:

    • No significant difference in gene expression was observed between cells attached to fibronectin and those unattached on agarose.
    • Cells consistently responded to activin in a concentration-dependent manner, regardless of their level of contact with neighboring cells.
    • The expression of early activin-responsive genes was independent of cell-cell interactions.

    Conclusions:

    • Individual Xenopus blastula cells possess the intrinsic ability to sense and respond to activin concentration gradients.
    • Cell-cell interaction is not a prerequisite for interpreting morphogen concentration in early Xenopus development.
    • This finding supports a model where cells can interpret morphogen gradients autonomously.