The bone morphogenetic protein (Bmp) signalling pathway is central to vertebrate neural and epidermal development. The antagonism of Bmp signals has been proposed to induce neural fate in the ectoderm, but this model does not explain all that is known about neural induction. On p. 3581, Kudoh et al. report that fibroblast growth factor (Fgf) and Bmp signalling combine to pattern zebrafish gastrula into prospective neural and epidermal domains. Their fate-mapping and genetic experiments show it is Fgf activity, not Bmp antagonism, that initiates the development of the prospective vegetal neural tissue that contributes to the trunk and tail central nervous system. Bmp activity in these same cells promotes the adoption of a caudal neural fate. Given that high levels of Bmp signalling in the animal ectoderm induce an epidermal fate, Bmp activity during gastrulation seems to have different roles in the animal and vegetal ectoderm.
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 30 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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