Limb proportions show developmental plasticity in response to embryo movement
Citations Over TimeTop 1% of 2017 papers
Abstract
Animals have evolved limb proportions adapted to different environments, but it is not yet clear to what extent these proportions are directly influenced by the environment during prenatal development. The developing skeleton experiences mechanical loading resulting from embryo movement. We tested the hypothesis that environmentally-induced changes in prenatal movement influence embryonic limb growth to alter proportions. We show that incubation temperature influences motility and limb bone growth in West African Dwarf crocodiles, producing altered limb proportions which may, influence post-hatching performance. Pharmacological immobilisation of embryonic chickens revealed that altered motility, independent of temperature, may underpin this growth regulation. Use of the chick also allowed us to merge histological, immunochemical and cell proliferation labelling studies to evaluate changes in growth plate organisation, and unbiased array profiling to identify specific cellular and transcriptional targets of embryo movement. This disclosed that movement alters limb proportions and regulates chondrocyte proliferation in only specific growth plates. This selective targeting is related to intrinsic mTOR (mechanistic target of rapamycin) pathway activity in individual growth plates. Our findings provide new insights into how environmental factors can be integrated to influence cellular activity in growing bones and ultimately gross limb morphology, to generate phenotypic variation during prenatal development.
Related Papers
- → The chick limbless mutation causes abnormalities in limb bud dorsal-ventral patterning: implications for the mechanism of apical ridge formation(1996)103 cited
- → Retinoids reprogramme pre-bud mesenchyme to give changes in limb pattern(1987)39 cited
- → Limb Development Anomalies: Genetics(2012)1 cited
- → Coordination of limb bud development : the role of SHH in PD limb bud patterning(2012)
- → The effects of cyclopamine on the ontogeny of fibroblast growth factor 8 mRNA expression during embryonic development of the chick limb(2013)