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Regionalization of the Early Nervous System

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Neurogenetics

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Abstract

In this chapter, we focus on observations that were made in the field of comparative nervous system development by studies carried out in Drosophila and in vertebrate model systems. We will first look at homologous genes that are expressed along the dorsoventral body axis during early neural induction and patterning. Secondly, we discuss findings about the expression and functions of genes involved in anteroposterior patterning of the central nervous system. Despite the significant morphological and developmental differences between insects and vertebrates, there is astonishing conservation between the genetic and molecular mechanisms that control the regionalization of the nervous system. Hence, the data imply that comparable mechanisms operate during embryonic brain development in protostome and deuterostome lineages.

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Acknowledgment

I am grateful to Professor Dr. Heinrich Reichert (*1949, †2019) for his advice and discussions toward this chapter.

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  1. Department of Biology, University of Fribourg, Fribourg, Switzerland

    Boris Egger

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    Boris Egger

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Egger, B. (2023). Regionalization of the Early Nervous System. In: Egger, B. (eds) Neurogenetics . Learning Materials in Biosciences. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-07793-7_3

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