Caspase-9 regulates apoptosis/proliferation balance during metamorphic brain remodeling in Xenopus.

ABSTRACT: During anuran metamorphosis, the tadpole brain is transformed producing the sensorial and motor systems required for the frog's predatory lifestyle. Nervous system remodeling simultaneously implicates apoptosis, cell division, and differentiation. The molecular mechanisms underlying this remodeling have yet to be characterized. Starting from the observation that active caspase-9 and the Bcl-X(L) homologue, XR11 are highly expressed in tadpole brain during metamorphosis, we determined their implication in regulating the balance of apoptosis and proliferation in the developing tadpole brain. In situ hybridization showed caspase-9 mRNA to be expressed mainly in the ventricular area, a site of neuroblast proliferation. To test the functional role of caspase-9 in equilibrating neuroblast produc

SUBMITTER: Coen L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC1895979 | biostudies-literature | 2007 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature