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Mini-Review

An ancestral regulatory network for posterior development in arthropods

Alistair P. McGregor, Matthias Pechmann, Evelyn E. Schwager and Wim G.M. Damen

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A number of recent studies have investigated posterior development in several different arthropods. As previously found in spiders, it has been discovered that Delta-Notch signaling is required for the development of posterior segments in an insect, the cockroach Periplaneta americana. Furthermore analysis of Wnt8 function in the spider Achaearanea tepidariorum and the beetle Tribolium castaneum demonstrates that this Wnt ligand is required for the establishment of the growth zone and development of posterior segments in both these arthropods. Taken together these studies provide an interesting insight into the architecture of the genetic network that regulated posterior development in the common ancestor of the arthropods.

Authors

Alistair P. McGregor Corresponding author: alistair.mcgregor@vu-wien.ac.at

Veterinärmedizinische Universität Wien

Matthias Pechmann

Georg-August-Universität; Göttingen, Germany

Evelyn E. Schwager

University of Cologne; Cologne, Germany

Wim G.M. Damen

University of Cologne; Cologne, Germany

This is an open-access article

 Download PDF

If the document does not open, please right-click on the link (control-click on a Macintosh) and select the option to save the file to disk.