![]() Although fin shape is connected with swimming performance 1, fins also serve important signal functions in competitive and sexual interactions. Xiphophorus platyfish and swordtails, Bodianus lipfish, various gourami and cichlid genera). One part of this immense diversity is variation in fin shape, which often distinguishes even closely related species (e.g. The phenotypic diversity of fish is outstanding among vertebrates. Moreover, while the observed expression patterns were generally consistent with zebrafish results, we also detected deviating expression correlations and gene functions. Interestingly, some of these genes showed fin specific expression differences which are often neglected in studies of model fish that focus on the caudal fin. The identified genes include skeletogenic and growth factors (igf2b, fgf3, bmp2 and bmp4), components of the WNT pathway (lef1, wnt5b and wnt10) and a regulatory network determining fin ray segment size and junction (cx43, esco2 and sema3d), as well as other genes with different roles (mmp9, msxb and pea3). ![]() Via qPCR assays, we detected expression differences of candidate genes between elongated and short regions of intact and regenerating fins. Relying on available genetic knowledge brought forth mainly by the comprehensive study of the zebrafish caudal fin, we explored candidate molecular mechanisms for the maintenance and formation of the conspicuously elongated filaments adorning the unpaired fins of the East African " princess cichlid " Neolamprologus brichardi. The diversity of fin morphology within and across fish taxa offers great, but still largely unexplored, opportunities to investigate the proximate mechanisms underlying fin shape variation.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |