Gene Expression Profiles of , and in Swimming Larva of Sea Cucumber .

The sea cucumber, , is one of the most valuable aquatic species. The color of body wall and appearance are important for the value of sea cucumbers. To examine expression pattern of (), (), and (), previously reported as differently expressed genes during the pigmentation of sea cucumber, we analyzed the temporal profiles of , , and mRNAs in LED-exposed and light-shielded .

Gonadal Changes during the Annual Reproductive Cycle of the Ascidian (Pallas).

The ascidian (sea peach), a marine invertebrate, belongs to the same genus of the phylum Chordata along with the ascidian (sea pineapple), which is one of the model animals in the field of developmental biology. The characteristics of development and reproduction of are not yet known in detail. In order to find out the spawning period of , we investigated development of the gonads during the annual reproductive cycle.

Mitochondria-Specific Monoclonal Antibodies in Eggs and Embryos of the Ascidian .

Ascidian embryos have become an important model for embryological studies, offering a simple example for mechanisms of cytoplasmic components segregation. It is a well-known example that the asymmetric segregation of mitochondria into muscle lineage cells occurs during ascidian embryogenesis. However, it is still unclear which signaling pathway is involved in this process.

A droplet-based microfluidic immunosensor for high efficiency melamine analysis.

We report a droplet-based microfluidic immunosensor for the rapid and accurate detection of melamine, an organic base that has been implicated in widescale adulteration of food products such as milk. Our melamine assay is based on the competitive reaction between native melamine and a melamine-fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC) conjugate against an anti-hapten antibody. The adoption of fluorescence polarization, allows the quantification of melamine in a more direct and rapid manner than established heterogeneous methods based on liquid chromatography, mass spectrometry, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).

A droplet-based fluorescence polarization immunoassay (dFPIA) platform for rapid and quantitative analysis of biomarkers.

Herein, we describe for the first time the integration of pneumatic micro-pumps with droplet-based microfluidic systems as basic platform for the rapid detection and quantitation of biomarkers. Specifically, we combine this microfluidic platform with fluorescence polarization detection to identify and quantify the potent blood vessel inducing protein bovine angiogenin within cow's milk in high-throughput. The droplet-based fluorescence polarization immunoassay is successful in accurately determining the concentration (4.

Expression of Hr-Erf Gene during Ascidian Embryogenesis.

FGF9/16/20 signaling pathway specify the developmental fates of notochord, mesenchyme, and neural cells in ascidian embryos. Although a conserved Ras/MEK/Erk/Ets pathway is known to be involved in this signaling, the detailed mechanisms of regulation of FGF signaling pathway have remained largely elusive. In this study, we have isolated Hr-Erf, an ascidian orthologue of vertebrate Erf, to elucidate interactions of transcription factors involved in FGF signaling of the ascidian embryo.

The ascidian numb gene involves in the formation of neural tissues.

Notch signaling plays fundamental roles in various animal development. It has been suggested that Hr-Notch, a Notch homologue in the ascidian Halocynthia roretzi, is involved in the formation of peripheral neurons by suppressing the neural fates and promoting the epidermal differentiation. However, roles of Notch signaling remain controversial in the formation of nervous system in ascidian embryos.

A transiently expressed connexin is essential for anterior neural plate development in Ciona intestinalis.

A forward genetic screen in the ascidian Ciona intestinalis identified a mutant line (frimousse) with a profound disruption in neural plate development. In embryos with the frimousse mutation, the anteriormost neural plate cells, which are products of an FGF induction at the blastula and gastrula stages, initially express neural plate-specific genes but fail to maintain the induced state and ultimately default to epidermis. The genetic lesion in the frimousse mutant lies within a connexin gene (cx-11) that is transiently expressed in the developing neural plate in a temporal window corresponding to the period of a-lineage neural induction.

9-Cis-retinoic acid induces growth inhibition in retinoid-sensitive breast cancer and sea urchin embryonic cells via retinoid X receptor α and replication factor C3.

There is widespread interest in defining factors and mechanisms that suppress the proliferation of cancer cells. Retinoic acid (RA) is a potent suppressor of mammary cancer and developmental embryonic cell proliferation. However, the molecular mechanisms by which 9-cis-RA signaling induces growth inhibition in RA-sensitive breast cancer and embryonic cells are not apparent.

Molecular and expression analysis of the farnesoid X receptor in the urochordate Halocynthia roretzi.

The farnesoid X receptors (FXRs) are the major transcriptional regulators of bile salt synthesis in vertebrates. However, the structural conservation of invertebrate FXRs has only been studied for the major model organisms and studies on additional invertebrate FXRs are clearly required to obtain better resolution of FXR phylogeny and comparative developmental insights in chordates. In the present study, the cDNA encoding the farnesoid X receptor, HrFXR, was cloned from a marine invertebrate Halocynthia roretzi.

Tissue-specific regulation of the number of cell division rounds by inductive cell interaction and transcription factors during ascidian embryogenesis.

Mechanisms that regulate the number of cells constituting the body have remained largely elusive. We approached this issue in the ascidian, Halocynthia roretzi, which develops into a tadpole larva with a small number of cells. The embryonic cells divide 11 times on average from fertilization to hatching.

Conserved properties of a urochordate estrogen receptor-related receptor (ERR) with mammalian ERRalpha.

Estrogen receptor-related receptors (ERRs) were the first orphan nuclear receptors identified on the basis of their sequence similarity to the estrogen receptors. Although unique ERRs were found in some marine invertebrates, the molecular functions of these receptors are not well understood. In the present study, we identified three transcript variants of the tunicate Halocynthia roretzi ERR (Hr-ERR), varying in their 3' untranslated regions, and putatively encoding a unique receptor deriving from an ancestor protein common to vertebrate ERRalpha/beta/gamma.

Characterization of the complete mitochondrial genome of Diphyllobothrium nihonkaiense (Diphyllobothriidae: Cestoda), and development of molecular markers for differentiating fish tapeworms.

We sequenced and characterized the complete mitochondrial genome of the Japanese fish tapeworm D. nihonkaiense. The genome is a circular-DNA molecule of 13607 bp (one nucleotide shorter than that of D.

Cell fate polarization in ascidian mesenchyme/muscle precursors by directed FGF signaling and role for an additional ectodermal FGF antagonizing signal in notochord/nerve cord precursors.

Asymmetric cell division plays a fundamental role in generating various types of embryonic cell. In ascidian embryos, asymmetric cell divisions occur in the vegetal hemisphere in a manner similar to those found in Caenorhabditis elegans. Early divisions in embryos of both species involve inductive events on a single mother cell that result in production of daughters with different cell fates.