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Updated: Apr 21, 2026

A Method for Extracting Pigments from Squid Doryteuthis pealeii
Published on: November 9, 2016
The ascidian pigmented sensory organs: structures and developmental programs
R Esposito1, C Racioppi, M R Pezzotti
1Cellular and Developmental Biology Department, Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Villa Comunale, 80121, NAPOLI, Italy.
Abstract:
The recent advances on ascidian pigment sensory organ development and function represent a fascinating platform to get insight on the basic programs of chordate eye formation. This review aims to summarize current knowledge, at the structural and molecular levels, on the two main building blocks of ascidian light sensory organ, i.e. pigment cells and photoreceptor cells. The unique features of these structures (e.g., simplicity and well characterized cell lineage) are indeed making it possible to dissect the developmental programs at single cell resolution and will soon provide a panel of molecular tools to be exploited for a deep developmental and comparative-evolutionary analysis.
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