Genitourinary functions of Hoxa13 and Hoxd13

Virginia Scott1, Emily A Morgan, H Scott Stadler

  • 1Shriners Hospital for Children, 3101 SW Sam Jackson Park Road, Portland, OR 97239, USA.

Related Concept Videos

Pleiotropy01:33

Pleiotropy

Pleiotropy is the phenomenon in which a single gene impacts multiple, seemingly unrelated phenotypic traits. For example, defects in the SOX10 gene cause Waardenburg Syndrome Type 4, or WS4, which can cause defects in pigmentation, hearing impairments, and an absence of intestinal contractions necessary for elimination. This diversity of phenotypes results from the expression pattern of SOX10 in early embryonic and fetal development. SOX10 is found in neural crest cells that form melanocytes,...
The Y Chromosome Determines Maleness02:19

The Y Chromosome Determines Maleness

The Y chromosome is a sex chromosome found in several vertebrates and mammals, including humans. In addition to 22 pairs of autosomes, the human males have one X chromosome and one Y chromosome. In these organisms, the presence or absence of the Y chromosome determines the development of male traits.
Evolution
Around 300 million years ago, the two sex chromosomes diverged from two identical autosomal chromosomes. Over time, the Y chromosome has lost most of its genes, shrinking in size. Today,...
Exon Recombination02:32

Exon Recombination

The evolution of new genes is critical for speciation. Exon recombination, also known as exon shuffling or domain shuffling, is an important means of new gene formation. It is observed across vertebrates, invertebrates, and in some plants such as potatoes and sunflowers. During exon recombination, exons from the same or different genes recombine and produce new exon-intron combinations, which might evolve into new genes. 
Exon shuffling follows “splice frame rules.” Each exon has three reading...
Canonical Wnt Signaling Pathway02:54

Canonical Wnt Signaling Pathway

The gene encoding the main signaling molecules of the Wnt signaling pathways (the Wnt proteins) was discovered almost four decades ago by Nüsslein-Volhard and Wieschaus. They identified and originally named the gene "wingless" (wg) after a phenotype discovered during their landmark genetic screen in Drosophila for body pattern defects. At around the same time, another researcher named Harold Varmus found that a murine tumor virus activates the mammalian wg homolog, Int-1, which results in tumor...
Hedgehog Signaling Pathway02:33

Hedgehog 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...
Development of the Sexual Organs in the Embryo and Fetus01:15

Development of the Sexual Organs in the Embryo and Fetus

Development of the reproductive organs in an embryo starts from a bipotential state. This means the early embryo can develop either male or female reproductive organs. The formation of these organs begins with the growth of gonadal ridges that arise from the intermediate mesoderm during the fifth week of development.
Near the gonadal ridges, two duct systems are present: the mesonephric ducts (Wolffian ducts) and paramesonephric ducts (Müllerian ducts). These ducts form the basis for the male...