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Spatial and temporal expression of the retinoic acid receptor in the regenerating amphibian limb

Nature volume 337, pages 566–569 (1989)Cite this article

A Correction to this article was published on 07 September 1989

Abstract

Retinoic acid is known to have dramatic effects on vertebrate limb pattern in development and regeneration, supporting a model in which a gradient of retinoic acid serves as a morphogen to differentially supply positional information to a developing limb. The discovery of a retinoic acid receptor (RAR)1,2 and its homology to the steroid and thyroid hormone receptors3 provided a potential molecular mechanism for limb morphogenesis4. One prediction of this model is that the receptor must be expressed in the developing and regenerating limb anlage. We investigated the expression of the RAR in the adult newt, Notophthalmus viridescens, whose amputated limbs are capable of regenerating and upon which retinoic acid can act to alter pattern. We report the cloning of cDNAs encoding a functional newt RAR and the localization of high and uniform levels of RAR mRNA specifically in the regenerating cells that control limb pattern. These results indicate that the morphogenic field is established through differential activation of pre-existing retinoic acid receptors rather than differential expression of the RAR gene.

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Author information

Author notes

  1. Vincent Giguère

    Present address: Division of Endocrinology, Research Institute, The Hospital for Sick Children, 555 University Avenue, Toronto, M5G 1X8, Canada

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Howard Hughes Medical Institute, The Salk Institute for Biological Studies, La Jolla, California, 92037, USA

    Vincent Giguère, Estelita S. Ong & Ronald M. Evans

  2. Department of Molecular Biology, Massachussetts General Hospital, Boston, Massachussetts, 02114

    Clifford J. Tabin

  3. Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachussetts, 02115, USA

    Clifford J. Tabin

Authors
  1. Vincent Giguère
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  2. Estelita S. Ong
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  3. Ronald M. Evans
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  4. Clifford J. Tabin
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Giguère, V., Ong, E., Evans, R. et al. Spatial and temporal expression of the retinoic acid receptor in the regenerating amphibian limb. Nature 337, 566–569 (1989). https://doi.org/10.1038/337566a0

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