The oncoprotein v-Myb activates transcription of Gremlin 2 during in vitro differentiation of the chicken neural crest to melanoblasts

0435832 - ÚMG 2015 RIV NL eng J - Journal Article
Starostová, Michaela - Čermák, Vladimír - Dvořáková, Marta - Karafiát, Vít - Kosla, Jan - Dvořák, Michal
The oncoprotein v-Myb activates transcription of Gremlin 2 during in vitro differentiation of the chicken neural crest to melanoblasts.
Gene. Roč. 540, č. 1 (2014), s. 122-129. ISSN 0378-1119. E-ISSN 1879-0038
R&D Projects: GA AV ČR KAN200520801
Institutional support: RVO:68378050
Keywords : Melanocyte development * Tamoxifen-inducible v-Myb * v-Myb-dependent genes * PRDC * KRT19
Subject RIV: EB - Genetics ; Molecular Biology
Impact factor: 2.138, year: 2014

The neural crest (NC) is a transient dynamic structure of ectodermal origin, found in early vertebrate embryos. The multipotential NC cells migrate along well defined routes, differentiate to various cell types including melanocytes and participate in the formation of various permanent tissues. As there is only limited information about the molecular mechanisms controlling early events in melanocyte specification and development, we exploited the AMV v-Myb transcriptional regulator, which directs differentiation of in vitro chicken NC cells to the melanocyte lineage. This activity is strictly dependent on v-Myb specifically binding to the Myb recognition DNA element (MRE). The two tamoxifen-inducible v-Myb alleles were constructed one which recognizes the MRE and one which does not. These were activated in ex ovo NC cells, and the expression profiles of resulting cells were analyzed using Affymetrix microarrays and RT-PCR These approaches revealed up-regulation of the BMP antagonist Gremlin 2 mRNA, and down-regulation of mRNAs encoding several epithelial genes including KRT19 as very early events following the activation of melanocyte differentiation by v-Myb. The enforced v-Myb expression in neural tubes of chicken embryos resulted in detectable presence of Gremlin 2 mRNA. However, expression of Gremlin 2 in NC cells did not promote formation of melanocytes suggesting that Gremlin 2 is not the master regulator of melanocytic differentiation. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Permanent Link: http://hdl.handle.net/11104/0241976