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Optic cup morphogenesis requires pre-lens ectoderm but not lens differentiation
Jeanette Hyer1, Julie Kuhlman, Evelyn Afif
1Department of Neurosurgery, University of California/San Francisco, Box 0520, 513 Parnassus Ave., San Francisco, CA 94143-0520, USA. jdhyer@itsa.ucsf.edu
Developmental Biology
|July 23, 2003
Summary
The optic cup forms when the optic vesicle contacts the pre-lens ectoderm. Lens removal does not prevent optic cup formation, suggesting the pre-lens ectoderm is crucial for optic cup morphogenesis.
Area of Science:
- Developmental biology
- Ophthalmology
- Cell signaling
Background:
- Vertebrate optic cup formation is a key developmental process.
- Optic cup and lens formation involve placode invagination.
- The role of lens tissue in optic cup morphogenesis is not fully understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of lens tissue in inducing and maintaining optic cup invagination.
- To determine if the optic cup can form without lens formation.
- To identify signals from the pre-lens ectoderm involved in optic cup development.
Main Methods:
- Surgical removal of lens tissue at various developmental stages in ovo.
- Observation of optic vesicle and optic cup development after tissue ablation.
- Experimental manipulation with BMP and FGF signaling pathways.
Main Results:
- Removal of pre-lens ectoderm prevented optic cup invagination, despite neural retinal differentiation.
- Ablation of the lens placode allowed optic vesicle invagination and optic cup formation.
- Ectopic BMP inhibited neural retina development and optic cup morphogenesis.
- FGF-induced neural retina differentiation alone was insufficient for optic cup formation.
Conclusions:
- Optic cup morphogenesis requires temporal association with pre-lens ectoderm.
- Optic cup formation is independent of lens formation.
- A signal from the pre-lens ectoderm likely induces optic cup formation in the optic vesicle.