Abstract
Human embryonic stem cells differentiate into gastrula organizer cells that express typical markers and induce secondary axes when injected into frog embryos. Here, we report that these human organizer cells express DUXO (DUX of the Organizer), a novel member of the double-homeobox (DUX) family of transcription factors, a group of genes unique to placental mammals. Both of DUXO's homeodomains share high similarity with those of Siamois and Twin, the initial inducers of the amphibian gastrula organizer. DUXO overexpression in human embryoid bodies induces organizer related genes, whereas its knock down hampers formation of the organizer and its derivatives. Finally, we show that DUXO regulates GOOSECOID, the canonical organizer marker, in a direct manner, suggesting that DUXO is a major regulator of human organizer formation.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 261-269 |
| Number of pages | 9 |
| Journal | Stem Cell Research |
| Volume | 9 |
| Issue number | 3 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Nov 2012 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:We thank Tamar Golan-Lev for her assistance with the graphic design, and Dr. Jonathan Nissenbaum for critically reviewing the manuscript. N.B. is the Herbert Cohn Chair in Cancer Research. This research was supported by The Legacy Heritage Biomedical Science Partnership Program of the Israel Science Foundation (Grant No. 943/09 ) and by the Centers of Excellence Legacy Heritage Biomedical Science Partnership (Grant No. 1801/10 ).