...Rieko Ajima; Yuko Sakakibara; Noriko Sakurai-Yamatani; Masafumi Muraoka; Yumiko Saga ABSTRACT MESP1 and MESP2 are transcriptional factors involved in mesoderm specification, somite boundary formation and somite polarity regulation. However, Mesp quadruple mutant zebrafish displayed only abnormal...

..., especially in terms of the molecular network. The temporal periodicity is subsequently converted into the spatial pattern of somites, and Mesp2 plays crucial roles in this conversion in the mouse. However, it remains unclear whether Mesp genes play similar roles in other vertebrates. In this study, we...

...Brad Davidson; Weiyang Shi; Michael Levine The bHLH transcription factor Mesp has an essential but ambiguous role in early chordate heart development. Here, we employ the genetic and morphological simplicity of the basal chordate Ciona intestinalis to elucidate Mesp regulation and function...

... giving rise to embryonic trunk ventral cells (TVCs) or the juvenile heart progenitors. Here, we show that Cs-Mesp , the sole ortholog of vertebrate Mesp genes in the ascidian Ciona savignyi , is specifically and transiently expressed in the embryonic heart progenitor cells (B7.5 cells). Cs-Mesp...