Distinct functional and temporal requirements for zebrafish Hdac1 during neural crest-derived craniofacial and peripheral neuron development.

The regulation of gene expression is accomplished by both genetic and epigenetic means and is required for the precise control of the development of the neural crest. In hdac1(b382) mutants, craniofacial cartilage development is defective in two distinct ways. First, fewer hoxb3a, dlx2 and dlx3-expressing posterior branchial arch precursors are specified and many of those that are consequently undergo apoptosis.

The zebrafish sf3b1b460 mutant reveals differential requirements for the sf3b1 pre-mRNA processing gene during neural crest development.

The functions of gene regulatory networks that control embryonic cell diversification occur on a background of constitutively active molecular machinery necessary for the elaboration of genetic interactions. The essential roles of subsets of such "housekeeping" genes in the regulation of specific aspects of development have become increasingly clear. Pre-mRNA processing is essential for production of functional transcripts by, for example, excision of introns.

Studying peripheral sympathetic nervous system development and neuroblastoma in zebrafish.

The combined experimental attributes of the zebrafish model system, which accommodates cellular, molecular, and genetic approaches, make it particularly well-suited for determining the mechanisms underlying normal vertebrate development as well as disease states, such as cancer. In this chapter, we describe the advantages of the zebrafish system for identifying genes and their functions that participate in the regulation of the development of the peripheral sympathetic nervous system (PSNS). The zebrafish model is a powerful system for identifying new genes and pathways that regulate PSNS development, which can then be used to genetically dissect PSNS developmental processes, such as tissue size and cell numbers, which in the past haves proved difficult to study by mutational analysis in vivo.

Genetic ablation of neural crest cell diversification.

The neural crest generates multiple cell types during embryogenesis but the mechanisms regulating neural crest cell diversification are incompletely understood. Previous studies using mutant zebrafish indicated that foxd3 and tfap2a function early and differentially in the development of neural crest sublineages. Here, we show that the simultaneous loss of foxd3 and tfap2a function in zebrafish foxd3(zdf10);tfap2a(low) double mutant embryos globally prevents the specification of developmentally distinct neural crest sublineages.

Zebrafish endzone regulates neural crest-derived chromatophore differentiation and morphology.

The development of neural crest-derived pigment cells has been studied extensively as a model for cellular differentiation, disease and environmental adaptation. Neural crest-derived chromatophores in the zebrafish (Danio rerio) consist of three types: melanophores, xanthophores and iridiphores. We have identified the zebrafish mutant endzone (enz), that was isolated in a screen for mutants with neural crest development phenotypes, based on an abnormal melanophore pattern.