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Platelet-derived growth factor A chain is maternally encoded in Xenopus embryos
M Mercola1, D A Melton, C D Stiles
1Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA.
Science (New York, N.Y.)
|September 2, 1988
Abstract:
Transcription of zygotic genes does not occur in early Xenopus embryos until the mid-blastula transition, 6 to 7 hours after fertilization. Before this time, development is directed by maternal proteins and messenger RNAs stored within the egg. Two different forms of the A chain of platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) are shown here to be encoded by maternal messenger RNAs. The two forms closely resemble human PDGF; however, the long form contains a hydrophobic region near the carboxyl terminus. The presence of PDGF messenger RNA in the embryo supports the idea that endogenous growth factors act at the earliest stages of embryogenesis.