Evolution of extreme Elongation.

There is a ~100 fold difference in the number of vertebrae formed in vertebrates. Yet the evolutionary and developmental origins of this diversity remains largely unknown. In this project we focus on an extreme case of body plan evolution using the Japanese eel a.japonica. By collaborating with fishery departments in Japan we will establish molecular biology and genome engineering approaches in this wild model.

CRISPR/Cas9 injections will enable for the first time real-time imaging of the segmentation clock and elongation in eels. Functional knock-out experiments, multiplexed Hybridisation Chain Reaction (HCR), comparative genomics and transcriptomics will allow us to reveal the molecular mechanisms driving body plan evolution in vertebrates.

Collaborators

Kiyoshi Naruse (NIBB, Japan)

Yukinori Kazeto (FTI, Japan)

Nomura Kazuharu (FTI, Japan)