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Updated: Jan 3, 2026
An Explant Assay for Assessing Cellular Behavior of the Cranial Mesenchyme
Published on: January 20, 2013
Dynamic acetylation profile during mammalian neurulation
Valentina Massa1, Laura Avagliano1, Paolo Grazioli1
1Department of Health Sciences, University of Milan, Milan, Italy.
Background:
Neural tube defects (NTDs) result from failure of neural tube closure during embryogenesis. These severe birth defects of the central nervous system include anencephaly and spina bifida, and affect 0.5-2 per 1,000 pregnancies worldwide in humans. It has been demonstrated that acetylation plays a pivotal role during neural tube closure, as animal models for defective histone acetyltransferase proteins display NTDs. Acetylation represents an important component of the complex network of posttranslational regulatory interactions, suggesting a possible fundamental role during primary neurulation events. This study aimed to assess protein acetylation contribution to early patterning of the central nervous system both in human and murine specimens.
Methods:
We used both human and mouse (Cited2 -/- ) samples to analyze the dynamic acetylation of proteins during embryo development through immunohistochemistry, western blot analysis and quantitative polymerase chain reaction.
Results:
We report the dynamic profile of histone and protein acetylation status during neural tube closure. We also report a rescue effect in an animal model by chemical p53 inhibition.
Conclusions:
Our data suggest that the p53-acetylation equilibrium may play a role in primary neurulation in mammals.
