Poster abstracts
Poster number 9 submitted by Clare Austin
Identification of segmentation clock oscillatory transcripts in the zebrafish presomitic mesoderm
Clare C. Austin (Molecular Genetics, The Ohio State University ), Thomas L. Gallagher, Kathryn G. Thompson, Sharon L. Amacher (Molecular Genetics, The Ohio State University )
Abstract:
The segmentation clock is an oscillatory gene network that regulates somitogenesis, the formation of embryonic somites (segments) that later develop into vertebrae and musculature. Proline-rich nuclear receptor cofactor 2 (Pnrc2), a mRNA decay adaptor, is necessary for rapid decay of oscillatory gene transcripts in the presomitic mesoderm (PSM) in zebrafish. To identify additional oscillatory genes, I am characterizing transcripts identified via RNA-seq that are upregulated in pnrc2 mutant embryos compared to wild-type siblings. Using qPCR, I have validated 15 genes that are both oscillatory in human and mouse PSM and upregulated in pnrc2 mutant embryos and observed that at least 11 show enhanced and expanded expression in pnrc2 mutant embryos at mid-segmentation by in situ hybridization. I have also identified putative novel oscillating transcripts. To discover if any function as segmentation clock regulators, I will use CRISPR-mediated knockdown to observe whether loss of function affects somite formation.
Keywords: oscillatory expression, segmentation