# GENE EXPRESSION IN EARLY EMBRYONIC DEVELOPMENT

> **NIH NIH R37** · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA BERKELEY · 1994 · $259,527

## Abstract

The broad objective of this proposal is to learn how cells interact in
the developing embryo to bring about determination and differentiation.
the commitment of the progeny of a totipotent ovum to the various
differentiation pathways of the developing embryo is a basic biological
problem of prime importance.  Choices made by cells to follow different
paths are central to normal and abnormal embryonic development, to
cancer, would repair, and aging.  The experiments will focus on the sea
urchin embryo, a system very similar to vertebrates in its reliance on
cell interactions as a way of bringing about determination of various
cell types and lineages in early development.  This embryo has various
blastomeres that can be separated form one another and recombined in
various ways.  New tissue specific markers that serve as reliable
indicators of specific differentiation pathways are now available.
first, these markers will be used to learn the rules that govern
specific gene expression.  This will involve experiments in which
individual blastomeres are cultured alone or in combination with other
blastomere types, or with various agents (e.g., Li ion, FGF).  The fate
of the blastomeres and expression of various genes will be measured by
in situ hybridization and immunocytochemistry.  Are there localized
substances in the vegetal hemisphere of the egg that initiate the
lineages that form gut and spicules:  Are there ions or agonists that
might be effective in causing vegetal differentiation of animal cells?
Do these agents use secondary messenger pathways to effect their
actions?  Second, the effort to develop and characterize tissue specific
cDNA clones will be continued.  The efforts will concentrate on cloning
spicule matrix genes, and on genes expressed solely in descendants of
mesomeres.  Third, the details of how expression of spicule matrix genes
is regulated will be studied.  Transcription of these genes will be
studied, in vitro, in nuclear extracts that transcribe defined
templates.  This functional assay will be used to conduct studies on the
DNA sequences necessary for promoter activity and to study proteins in
the extracts that interact with the DNA.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 2197163
- **Project number:** 4R37HD015043-14
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA BERKELEY
- **SAM.gov UEI:** GS3YEVSS12N6
- **Principal Investigator:** FRED H WILT
- **Activity code:** R37 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 1994
- **Award amount:** $259,527
- **Award type:** 4N
- **Project period:** 1981-09-01 → 1999-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/2197163

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 2197163, GENE EXPRESSION IN EARLY EMBRYONIC DEVELOPMENT (4R37HD015043-14). Retrieved via MORVS 2026-10-25 from https://api.morvs.ai/grant/nih/2197163. Licensed CC0.

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