Journal
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
Volume 5, Issue -, Pages -Publisher
NATURE PUBLISHING GROUP
DOI: 10.1038/ncomms4766
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Funding
- National Natural Science Foundation of China [31221064, 90919058]
- Major Science Programs of China [2011CB943800]
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Bone morphogenetic proteins (Bmps) control dorsoventral patterning of vertebrate embryos through the establishment of a ventrodorsal gradient of the activated downstream cytoplasmic effectors Smad1/5/8. Some Bmp ligands are expressed in the ventral and lateral regions and in the organizer during gastrulation of the embryo, but it remains unclear how organizer-derived Bmps contribute to total Bmp ligand levels and to the establishment of the correct phospho-Smad1/5/8 gradient along the ventrodorsal axis. Here we demonstrate that interference with organizer-specific Bmp2b signalling in zebrafish embryos alters the phospho- Smad1/5/8 gradient throughout the ventrodorsal axis, elevates the levels of the Bmp antagonist Chordin and dorsalizes the embryos. Moreover, we show that organizer-derived Bmp2b represses chordin transcription in the organizer and contributes to the control of the Chordin gradient. Combining these experimental results with simulations of Bmp's reactiondiffusion dynamics, our data indicate that organizer-produced Bmp2b is required for the establishment and maintenance of a Bmp activity gradient and for appropriate embryonic dorsoventral patterning during gastrulation.
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