The plexin family transmembrane proteins are putative receptors for semaphorins, which are implicated in the morphogenesis of animal embryos, including axonal guidance. We have generated and characterized putative null mutants of the C. elegans plexinA gene, plx-1. plx-1 mutants exhibited morphological defects: displacement of ray 1 and discontinuous alae. The epidermal precursors for the affected organs were aberrantly arranged in the mutants, and a plx-1::gfp transgene was expressed in these epidermal precursor cells as they underwent dynamic morphological changes. Suppression of C. elegans transmembrane semaphorins, Ce-Sema-1a and Ce-Sema-1b, by RNA interference caused a displacement of ray 1 similar to that of plx-1 mutants, whereas mutants for the Ce-Sema-2a/mab-20 gene, which encodes a secreted-type semaphorin, exhibited phenotypes distinct from those of plx-1 mutants. A heterologous expression system showed that Ce-Sema-1a, but not Ce-Sema-2a, physically bound to PLX-1. Our results indicate that PLX-1 functions as a receptor for transmembrane-type semaphorins, and, though Ce-Sema-2a and PLX-1 both play roles in the regulation of cellular morphology during epidermal morphogenesis, they function rather independently.
Interviews with Biologists @ 100 conference speakers
Explore our interviews with keynote speakers from the Biologists @ 100 conference, hosted to celebrate our publisher’s 100th anniversary, where we discuss climate change and biodiversity with Hans-Otto Pörtner and Jane Francis, health and disease with Charles Swanton and Sadaf Farooqi, and emerging technologies with Manu Prakash and Jennifer Lippincott-Schwartz.
Call for papers – Lifelong Development: the Maintenance, Regeneration and Plasticity of Tissues
Development invites you to submit your latest research to our upcoming special issue – Lifelong Development: the Maintenance, Regeneration and Plasticity of Tissues. This issue will be coordinated by Guest Editors Meritxell Huch (Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics, Germany) and Mansi Srivastava (Harvard University and Museum of Comparative Zoology, USA), working alongside our team of academic Editors. Submit your articles by 15 May 2025.
A case for broadening our view of mechanism in developmental biology
In this Perspective, B. Duygu Özpolat and colleagues survey researchers on their views on what it takes to infer mechanism in developmental biology. They examine what factors shape our idea of what we mean by ‘mechanism’ and suggest a path forward that embraces a broad outlook on the diversity of studies that advance knowledge in our field.
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