FGF binding protein 3 is required for spinal cord motor neuron development and regeneration in zebrafish.

Fibroblast growth factor binding protein 3 (Fgfbp3) have been known to be crucial for the process of neural proliferation, differentiation, migration, and adhesion. However, the specific role and the molecular mechanisms of fgfbp3 in regulating the development of motor neurons remain unclear. In this study, we have investigated the function of fgfbp3 in morphogenesis and regeneration of motor neuron in zebrafish.

Polarized endosome dynamics engage cytoplasmic Par-3 that recruits dynein during asymmetric cell division.

In the developing embryos, the cortical polarity regulator Par-3 is critical for establishing Notch signaling asymmetry between daughter cells during asymmetric cell division (ACD). How cortically localized Par-3 establishes asymmetric Notch activity in the nucleus is not understood. Here, using in vivo time-lapse imaging of mitotic radial glia progenitors in the developing zebrafish forebrain, we uncover that during horizontal ACD along the anteroposterior embryonic axis, endosomes containing the Notch ligand DeltaD (Dld) move toward the cleavage plane and preferentially segregate into the posterior (subsequently basal) Notch daughter.

Sterol and oxysterol synthases near the ciliary base activate the Hedgehog pathway.

Vertebrate Hedgehog signals are transduced through the primary cilium, a specialized lipid microdomain that is required for Smoothened activation. Cilia-associated sterol and oxysterol lipids bind to Smoothened to activate the Hedgehog pathway, but how ciliary lipids are regulated is incompletely understood. Here we identified DHCR7, an enzyme that produces cholesterol, activates the Hedgehog pathway, and localizes near the ciliary base.