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Article
Open AccessEarly expression onset of tissue-specific effector genes during the specification process in sea urchin embryos
In the course of animal developmental processes, various tissues are differentiated through complex interactions within the gene regulatory network. As a general concept, differentiation has been considered to...
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Article
Open AccessDuplication of spiralian-specific TALE genes and evolution of the blastomere specification mechanism in the bivalve lineage
Despite the conserved pattern of the cell-fate map among spiralians, bivalves display several modified characteristics during their early development, including early specification of the D blastomere by the c...
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Article
Open AccessGene regulation of adult skeletogenesis in starfish and modifications during gene network co-option
The larval skeleton of the echinoderm is believed to have been acquired through co-option of a pre-existing gene regulatory network (GRN); that is, the mechanism for adult skeleton formation in the echinoderm ...
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Development of Marine Invertebrates
Marine invertebrates are used in developmental, cell, and evolutionary biology, and some critical biological phenomena have been found using these organisms. For example, one of the most important cell-cycle r...
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Article
Open AccessThe role of retinoic acid signaling in starfish metamorphosis
Although retinoic acid (RA) signaling plays a crucial role in the body patterning of chordates, its function in non-chordate invertebrates, other than its mediation of environmental cues triggering metamorphos...
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Article
Expansion of TALE homeobox genes and the evolution of spiralian development
Spiralians, including molluscs, annelids and platyhelminths, share a unique development process that includes the typical geometry of early cleavage and early segregation of cell fate in blastomeres along the ...
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Article
Open AccessBivalve-specific gene expansion in the pearl oyster genome: implications of adaptation to a sessile lifestyle
Bivalve molluscs have flourished in marine environments, and many species constitute important aquatic resources. Recently, whole genome sequences from two bivalves, the pearl oyster, Pinctada fucata, and the Pac...
