Notochord induction of zebrafish slow muscle mediated by sonic hedgehog

Chris S. Blagden, Peter D. Currie, Philip W. Ingham, Simon M. Hughes

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleResearchpeer-review

327 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

The patterning of vertebrate somitic muscle is regulated by signals from neighboring tissues. We examined the generation of slow and fast muscle in zebrafish embryos and show that Sonic hedgehog (Shh) secreted from the notochord can induce slow muscle from medial cells of the somite. Slow muscle derives from medial adaxial myoblasts that differentiate early, whereas fast muscle arises later from a separate myoblast pool. Mutant fish lacking shh expression fail to form slow muscle but do form fast muscle. Ectopic expression of shh, either in wild-type or mutant embryos, leads to ectopic slow muscle at the expense of fast. We suggest that Shh acts to induce myoblasts committed to slow muscle differentiation from uncommitted presomitic mesoderm.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)2163-2175
Number of pages13
JournalGenes & Development
Volume11
Issue number17
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Sept 1997
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Adaxial cells
  • Fiber type
  • Muscle
  • Myoblast
  • Sonic hedgehog
  • Zebrafish

Cite this