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MicroRNAs in facial development

Nature Genetics volume 40, pages 268–269 (2008)Cite this article

Cranial neural crest cell migration is a prerequisite for normal craniofacial morphogenesis in animals. A new study shows that the movement of a specific subset of cranial neural crest cells is exquisitely sensitive to concentrations of a microRNA that targets platelet-derived growth factor receptor alpha mRNA.

Among human birth defect syndromes, facial clefting is one of the most prevalent. Cleft lip (with or without cleft palate) occurs at a rate of 1 in 1,000 live births, and cleft palate occurs at a rate of 1 in 2,000 live births1,2. Many genes are involved in normal palatogenesis, and understanding how their mutation results in clefting remains a challenge. On page 290 of this issue, Johann Eberhart and colleagues3 show that platelet-derived growth factor receptor alpha (Pdgfra) is required for normal palatogenesis and that its signaling is regulated in part by microRNA 140 (Mirn140). The skeletal elements of the palate are derived from embryonic neural crest cells (NCC) that migrate around the eyes and interact with the oral ectoderm during their differentiation and patterning. Absence of early Pdgfra signaling or failure to downregulate late Pdgfra signaling prevents these neural crest–derived palatal precursors from reaching the oral ectoderm, thus disrupting the initial events in palatogenesis. Although miRNAs are known to regulate a number of developmental events4,5, this report is one of the first examples of a miRNA regulating craniofacial development and suggests that NCC movement may be regulated through a delicate equilibrium that balances attraction to a protein with the ability to move independently of that protein.

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Figure 1: Mirn140 attenuates Pdgfra signaling in palatal precursors.

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  1. David E. Clouthier is in the Department of Craniofacial Biology, University of Colorado Denver, Aurora, Colorado 80045, USA. david.clouthier@uchsc.edu,

    David E Clouthier

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  1. David E Clouthier
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Clouthier, D. MicroRNAs in facial development. Nat Genet 40, 268–269 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1038/ng0308-268

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/ng0308-268

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