First published online January 27, 2005
Development 132, 405e (2005)
© The Company of Biologists Limited
Building the right embryonic scaffold
During early Xenopus development, embryonic cells assemble a
cortical actin network that maintains an embryo's overall shape and rigidity.
But how does each cell assemble an appropriately patterned and dense network?
Lloyd et al. now report on p.
805 that
lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) a bioactive lipid that influences actin
networks and cellular morphology plays an important role in this
process. Their findings show that if the LPA1 and LPA2
receptors are overexpressed in the whole frog embryo (LPA2 is newly
identified here), denser actin networks develop. Conversely, depleting LPA
receptor levels in early embryos reduces network density. When LPA is added to
dissociated embryonic cells, or when they are allowed to reaggregate, a
denser, more normal actin network replaces the coarser network seen. The
authors conclude that intercellular signalling between cells is required to
maintain a normally patterned and dense actin network to support the
developing embryo, and that this signalling requires LPA.
Related articles in Development:
- Lysophosphatidic acid signaling controls cortical actin assembly and cytoarchitecture in Xenopus embryos
- Brett Lloyd, QingHua Tao, Stephanie Lang, and Chris Wylie
Development 2005 132: 805-816.
[Abstract]
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