Wnt dynamics at the blastopore and stomodeum during sea urchin gastrulation.
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2026-04
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In the sea urchin embryo, as many as ten Wnts are expressed by cells that undergo gastrulation movements. Here, Wnt1, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 16 are examined to learn details of expression and function over time using results from a temporal scRNA-seq analysis coupled with hybridization chain reaction in situ analysis in which multiple wnt genes are localized simultaneously in the same embryo. The data reveal that many cells express two or three wnt genes at the same time. A single sharp boundary of expression is seen just lateral to the blastopore. Other boundaries of expression are graded and change over developmental time. Functionally, experiments show that Wnts control expression and/or patterning of other wnt genes, and they control expression of marker genes during and following invagination of the archenteron. Stomodeum formation also requires Wnt signaling, indicating that the entire gut uses Wnt signaling for diversification of endodermal fates.
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Miranda, Esther, Leslie Slota-Burtt, Alejandro Berrio, Anirban Bardhan, Alexander Deiters, Gregory A Wray, Jenifer C Croce, David R McClay, et al. (2026). Wnt dynamics at the blastopore and stomodeum during sea urchin gastrulation. Development (Cambridge, England), 153(7). p. dev205272. 10.1242/dev.205272 Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/10161/35411.
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Gregory Allan Wray
I study the evolution of genes and genomes with the broad aim of understanding the origins of biological diversity. My approach focuses on changes in the expression of genes using both empirical and computational approaches and spans scales of biological organization from single nucleotides through gene networks to entire genomes. At the finer end of this spectrum of scale, I am focusing on understanding the functional consequences and fitness components of specific genetic variants within regulatory sequences of several genes associated with ecologically relevant traits. At the other end of the scale, I am developing molecular and analytical methods to detect changes in gene function throughout entire genomes, including statistical frameworks for detecting natural selection on regulatory elements and empirical approaches to identify functional variation in transcriptional regulation. At intermediate scales, I am investigating functional variation within a dense gene network in the context of wild populations and natural perturbations. My research leverages the advantages of several different model systems, but primarily focuses on sea urchins and primates (including humans).
David R. McClay
We ask how the embryo works. Prior to morphogenesis the
embryo specifies each cell through transcriptional regulation
and signaling. Our research builds gene regulatory networks to
understand how that early specification works. We then ask how
this specification programs cells for their morphogenetic
movements at gastrulation, and how the cells deploy patterning
information.
Current projects examine 1) novel signal transduction
mechanisms that establish and maintain embryonic boundaries
mold the embryo at gastrulation; 2) specification of primary
mesenchyme cells in such a way that they are prepared to
execute an epithelial-mesenchymal transition, and then study
mechanistically the regulation of that transition; 3) the
specification of endoderm necessary for invagination of the
archenteron; 4) formation of the oral/aboral ectoderm and the
means by which patterning information is distributed three
dimensionally around the embryo. That information is necessary
for patterning and inducing skeletogenesis.
Other projects examine neural tube folding with the goal of
identifying genes associated with neural tube defects. Finally, a
large current effort in systems biology is being expended with
the goal of enlarging our knowledge of early networks and how
they interact.
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