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Pax7 and superior collicular polarity: insights from Pax6 (Sey) mutant mice

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Abstract

Pax genes are important modulators of CNS development. Pax7 and Pax6 polarise the neural tube and regionalise the brain. Pax7 is pivotal in specifying the superior colliculus/tectum, an important centre for integration of visuomotor responses and a target for Pax6 + retinal ganglion cell axons during retinocollicular mapping. Whilst initial Pax7-specification of the mesencephalon is well-established, a role in regulating polarity within the maturing mouse superior colliculus is yet to be defined, although already detailed for the chick tectum. We therefore quantified Pax7 cellular distribution and expression levels at three functionally distinct stages of superior collicular development, and analysed Pax7 expression in response to aberrant axonal input and altered forebrain/midbrain boundary placement in Pax6 mutant mice. Comparative expression profiles of ephrin-A2 and its co-localisation with Pax7 were determined in wildtype and Pax6 mutant mice. Results indicate that graded Pax7 expression in wildtype mice is perturbed in Pax6 mutant mice; changes manifest as a shift in polarity, loss of graded expression and dramatically reduced protein levels during RGC synaptogenesis. Ephrin-A2 expression is similarly altered. These results implicate Pax7 as an important determinant of polarity within the mouse superior colliculus, and suggest a role in retinotopic mapping.

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Acknowledgments

The authors gratefully acknowledge Dr Meghan Thomas and Carole Bartlett for expert technical assistance. The Pax7 monoclonal antibody developed by Atsushi Kawakami was obtained from the Developmental Studies Hybridoma Bank developed under the auspices of the NICHD and maintained by the University of Iowa, Department of Biological Sciences, Iowa City, IA 52242. We thank Dr Paul Rigby and John Murphy for assistance with confocal imaging (at the Centre for Microscopy and Microanalysis/Biomedical Image and Analysis Facility), The University of Western Australia, supported by funding from University, State and Federal Government and Lotterywest.

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  1. School of Exercise, Biomedical and Health Sciences, Edith Cowan University, Joondalup Drive, Joondalup, WA, 6027, Australia

    Jennifer A. Thompson & Mel Ziman

  2. Save Sight Institute and Anatomy and Histology, Bosch Institute, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, 2006, Australia

    Frank J. Lovicu

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  1. Jennifer A. Thompson
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  2. Frank J. Lovicu
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  3. Mel Ziman
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Correspondence to Mel Ziman.

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Thompson, J.A., Lovicu, F.J. & Ziman, M. Pax7 and superior collicular polarity: insights from Pax6 (Sey) mutant mice. Exp Brain Res 178, 316–325 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00221-006-0735-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00221-006-0735-9

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