The Homeodomain Proteins Prox1, Six3 and Chx10 Regulate Proliferation, Cell Fate Specification and Differentiation in the Developing Retina
Year: 2003
Type: article
Abstract: The coordination of proliferation and cell fate specification is of particular importance in the developing central nervous system because different classes of neurons are generated at different stages of development from multipotent progenitor cells. As a consequence, if too many or too few cells exit the cell cycle during the early stages of development, a predictable shift in the ratio of neuronal cell types would occur. Such a perturbation could prove devastating for normal neural function. In the past several years, numerous advances have been made in our understanding of the roles played by cell cycle proteins in the development of a specialized region of the central nervous system, the retina. More recently, researchers have identified and characterized a number of homeodomain transcription factors that regulate retinal progenitor cell proliferation and cell fate specification. In this review, I will compare and contrast what we have recently learned about the homeodomain protein Prox1 with two other homeodomain proteins that are important regulators of retinal development, Chx10 and Six3. Taken together, the research on these three genes raises several new questions about the mechanisms underlying the coordination of proliferation and cell fate specification in the developing central nervous system.
Source: Cell Cycle
DOI: 10.4161/cc.2.4.429
Author: Michael A. Dyer
Institution: St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
Language: English
Subfield: Molecular Biology
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W1995685873