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Developmental biology

Asymmetrical threat averted

Nature volume 435, pages 155–156 (2005)Cite this article

The somites are embryonic elements that give rise to the muscles, skeleton and some skin layers of the trunk. They form in a symmetrical fashion, but to do so they must be shielded from asymmetrical cues.

The left–right differences seen in many of our internal organs are rooted in a cascade of molecular asymmetries that is established during development (Box 1). Discoveries over the past decade have provided an increasingly detailed picture of how such left–right asymmetry is imposed on the developing embryo5. However, regulation of the alternative — bilaterally symmetrical morphogenesis — has not been given serious attention.

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Figure 1: Maintaining symmetrical somitogenesis.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. the Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, 02115, Massachusetts, USA

    Eran Hornstein & Clifford J. Tabin

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  1. Eran Hornstein
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  2. Clifford J. Tabin
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Hornstein, E., Tabin, C. Asymmetrical threat averted. Nature 435, 155–156 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1038/435155a

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