Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

A community effect in muscle development.

J B Gurdon1, E Tiller, J Roberts

  • 1Wellcome CRC Institute, Tennis Court Road, Cambridge C132 1QR, UK.

Current Biology : CB
|January 1, 1993
PubMed
Summary

Cell interaction is crucial for muscle gene activation in Xenopus embryos. A minimum of 100 cells interacting together triggers muscle gene expression, demonstrating a developmental "community effect".

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Deterministic nuclear reprogramming of mammalian nuclei to a totipotency-like state by Amphibian meiotic oocytes for stem cell therapy in humans.

Biology open·2023
Same author

DNA-induced spatial entrapment of general transcription machinery can stabilize gene expression in a nondividing cell.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2022
Same author

The initiation and maintenance of a differentiated state in development.

Developmental biology·2021
Same author

Injected cells provide a valuable complement to cell-free systems for analysis of gene expression.

Experimental cell research·2020
Same author

Long-term association of a transcription factor with its chromatin binding site can stabilize gene expression and cell fate commitment.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2020
Same author

Identification of a regeneration-organizing cell in the <i>Xenopus</i> tail.

Science (New York, N.Y.)·2019

Area of Science:

  • Developmental Biology
  • Cellular Biology
  • Genetics

Background:

  • Vertebrate tissues develop through embryonic induction, forming distinct cell populations with specific gene expression.
  • Preliminary evidence suggests a secondary cell interaction is necessary for muscle gene activation in uniform cell populations after mesoderm induction.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To establish the existence, timing, and location of a crucial cell interaction required for muscle gene activation in Xenopus.
  • To investigate the role of cell proximity and communication in activating myogenic genes.

Main Methods:

  • Transplantation of Xenopus mid-gastrula muscle progenitor cells into ectoderm sandwiches.
  • Culture of constructs to observe muscle gene activation.
  • Analysis of gene expression in reaggregated versus single-cell implants.

Main Results:

  • Muscle progenitor cells require interaction with over 100 neighboring cells to activate early myogenic and later muscle-specific genes.
  • Implanted cells activated muscle genes when in reaggregates, but not as single cells.
  • A novel inductive signal, distinct from mesoderm induction, mediates muscle gene activation, independent of gap junction communication.

Conclusions:

  • Cell-cell interaction within the muscle progenitor region is essential for homogeneous cell groups to activate muscle genes in Xenopus.
  • This phenomenon, termed the 'community effect', may be a general mechanism for enhancing tissue homogeneity and demarcation during embryonic development.

Related Experiment Videos