PUBLICATION

A small change with a twist ending - a single residue in EGF-CFC drives Bilaterian asymmetry

Authors

Truchado-García, M., Perry, K.J., Cavodeassi, F., Kenny, N.J., Henry, J.Q., Grande, C.

ID

ZDB-PUB-221221-1

Date

2022

Source

Molecular Biology and Evolution 40(2): (Journal)

Registered Authors

Cavodeassi, Florencia

Keywords

Crepidula fornicata, Cripto, EGF-CFC, Evo-Devo, Nodal, Spiralia, Zebrafish, gene expression pattern, left-right asymmetry

MeSH Terms

Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental
Animals
Body Patterning/genetics
Zebrafish/genetics
Epidermal Growth Factor*/chemistry
Epidermal Growth Factor*/genetics
Mutation
Chordata*/genetics

(all 8)

PubMed

36537201 Full text @ Mol Bio Evol

Abstract

Asymmetries are essential for proper organization and function of organ systems. Genetic studies in bilaterians have shown signaling through the Nodal/Smad2 pathway plays a key, conserved role in the establishment of body asymmetries. However, while the main molecular players in the network for the establishment of left-right asymmetry (LRA) have been deeply described in deuterostomes, little is known about the regulation of Nodal signaling in spiralians. Here, we identified orthologs of the egf-cfc gene, a master regulator of the Nodal pathway in vertebrates, in several invertebrate species, which includes the first evidence of its presence in non-deuterostomes. Our functional experiments indicate that despite being present, egf-cfc does not play a role in the establishment of LRA in gastropods. However, experiments in zebrafish suggest that a single amino acid mutation in the egf-cfc gene in at least the common ancestor of chordates was the necessary step to induce a gain-of-function in LRA regulation. This study shows that the egf-cfc gene likely appeared in the ancestors of deuterostomes and protostomes, before being adopted as a master mechanism to regulate the Nodal pathway and the establishment of LRA in some lineages of deuterostomes.

Genes / Markers

Figures