Sea urchin Hox genes: insights into the ancestral Hox cluster |
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Authors: | Popodi E; Kissinger JC; Andrews ME; Raff RA |
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Institution: | Department of Biology, Indiana University, Bloomington 47405, USA. epopodi@bio.indiana.edu |
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Abstract: | We describe the Hox cluster in the radially symmetric sea urchin and
compare our findings to what is known from clusters in bilaterally
symmetric animals. Several Hox genes from the direct-developing sea urchin
Heliocidaris erythrogramma are described. CHEF gel analysis shows that the
Hox genes are clustered on a < or = 300 kilobase (kb) fragment of DNA,
and only a single cluster is present, as in lower chordates and other
nonvertebrate metazoans. Phylogenetic analyses of sea urchin, amphioxus,
Drosophila, and selected vertebrate Hox genes confirm that the H.
erythrogramma genes, and others previously cloned from other sea urchins,
belong to anterior, central, and posterior groups. Despite their radial
body plan and lack of cephalization, echinoderms retain at least one of the
anterior group Hox genes, an orthologue of Hox3. The structure of the
echinoderm Hox cluster suggests that the ancestral deuterostome had a Hox
cluster more similar to the current chordate cluster than was expected Sea
urchins have at least three Abd-B type genes, suggesting that Abd-B
expansion began before the radiation of deuterostomes.
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