Transient effects of microgravity on early embryos of Xenopus laevis

Mazière, A De; González-Jurado, J.; Reijnen, Mark; Narraway, J; Ubbels, Geertje A.

doi:10.1016/0273-1177(95)00638-u

Cited by 17 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 5 publications

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“…in near-weightlessness [60]. Only in 1985 did it become possible to perform such an experiment in actual microgravity (mg) under well-controlled conditions in the Biorack in the Space Lab [61,62] and, from 1988 onwards, during sounding rocket flights [63][64][65] and during additional space shuttle missions (table 1 and ref. 65a).…”

Section: Reviewsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…After fertilization the cortex contracts [105a] and within 10-12 min, the egg reacts to gravity and rotates as an entity inside its vitelline membrane, turning its animal-vegetal axis upright ('rotation of orientation') [52,53,56,62]. Successful fertilizations in actual [27,28,63,65,69,106] and simulated [67, 68 and this study] microgravity (mg) showed that the rotation of orientation [52,53] is not essential for normal development, since eggs developed normally [27,28,63,69] although they did not rotate under actual microgravity (mg) conditions. The second polar body is extruded at 9NT 0.25 (NT stands for the fraction of time to first cleavage) [6].…”

Section: Morphological Phenomena Started By Sperm Penetrationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…7), at different gravity loads we fertilized eggs in manually operated flight module-type laboratory modules, during 32 paraboles (g-spectrum: 0-1.8g) in a parabolic flight, and found axis formation more perturbed when the eggs were [63]. (B 2 ) mAEC, reversed side.…”

Section: Reviewsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…(B 2 ) mAEC, reversed side. Plungers, programmed for sequential activation to perform fertilization are down (T, A, R), the three additional ones providing washing and the two histological fixations (M, F1, F2), had not yet been activated [63]. (C) mAEC, used on the SR MASER-6, with two lateral EGG-compartments, and two sets of plungers, independently programmable for fertilization; twice as many eggs at a time could be fertilized.…”

Section: Reviewsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Establishment of polarities in the oocyte of Xenopus laevis: the provisional axial symmetry of the full-grown oocyte of Xenopus laevis

Ubbels

1997

CMLS, Cell. mol. life sci.

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We aimed at understanding of formation and function of the "Nieuwkoop Centre" in embryonic pattern formation. Discussed are data on genesis of cytoplasmic localizations in ovarian oocytes, transient modifications of cytoskeletal structures creating cytoplasmic asymmetries in fertilized eggs, the axis determining "vegetal cortical rotation" and fate of distinct cells, as shown by injection of specific molecular markers into particular blastomeres at specific times. Egg rotation and centrifugation suggested that sperm that gravity cooperate in symmetrization of the axially symmetrical anuran egg. After fertilization in space or in a fast rotating clinostate, axis formation and embryonic development were normal although the blastocoel was transiently abnormal. Normal tadpoles came back on Earth after ovulation, fertilization and culture in space. They metamorphosed normally and got healthy Earth-born F1 offspring. We conclude that neither sperm nor gravity are required for determination of the bilateral symmetry in the embryo of Xenopus laevis. In normal development sperm and gravity, either alone or in collaboration, may overrule an initial bilaterality inherent to, the full-grown oocyte, residing in some still unidentified component(s)/or mechanisms.

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Section: Reviewsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Morphological Phenomena Started By Sperm Penetrationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Reviewsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Reviewsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Establishment of polarities in the oocyte of Xenopus laevis: the provisional axial symmetry of the full-grown oocyte of Xenopus laevis

Ubbels

1997

CMLS, Cell. mol. life sci.

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“…Embryos raised in space from fertilization to free-living tadpole stage show characteristic differences compared to earth-bound or on-board centrifuged 1G control embryos, but the differences have been largely inconsequential (Souza et al, 1995;Black et al, 1996;De Maziere et al, 1996). Tadpoles of normal appearance emerge despite some alterations in cleavage, gastrulation, and neurulation.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Xenopus development from late gastrulation to feeding tadpole in simulated microgravity

Olson

Wiens²,

Gaul³

et al. 2010

Int. J. Dev. Biol.

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Microgravity (μG) is known to influence cytoskeletal structure, but its effects on cell migration are not well understood. To examine the effects of altered gravity on neural crest cell (NCC) migration, we inserted Xenopus laevis embryos into two separate μG-simulating slow turning lateral vessels (STLVs) just before neurulation (stage 11-12), and exposed them until feeding stage (stage 45), when the jaws and branchial apparatus are fully functional. To evaluate apparatus-related artifacts, we used two different STLVs and a vibration control as well as a stationary control vessel. Larval growth, pattern of NCC-derived cartilage formation, and incidence of malformations were analyzed using immunolocalization and wholemount staining of cartilage with Alcian blue. Interestingly, the two STLVs often yielded different or conflicting results. Many differences, such as increased cartilage size, attenuated Hoxa2 expression, and increased cell division, may be attributed mainly to vibration of the rotating vessels. However, tadpoles that developed in simulated microgravity (both STLVs, but not the vibration control) showed significantly more skeletal abnormalities, with stronger effects on cartilages derived from NCCs than those derived mainly from mesoderm. We conclude that migrating NCCs of Xenopus are sensitive to the altered gravitational environment of STLVs, and that studies relying on bioreactors to simulate microgravity also need to take variation in apparatus into account.

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Xenopus laevis – a success story of biological research in space

Horn

2006

Advances in Space Research

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Transient effects of microgravity on early embryos of Xenopus laevis

Cited by 17 publications

References 5 publications

Establishment of polarities in the oocyte of Xenopus laevis: the provisional axial symmetry of the full-grown oocyte of Xenopus laevis

Establishment of polarities in the oocyte of Xenopus laevis: the provisional axial symmetry of the full-grown oocyte of Xenopus laevis

Xenopus development from late gastrulation to feeding tadpole in simulated microgravity

Xenopus laevis – a success story of biological research in space

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