Patterns of apoptosis in the limb paddles of developing Correlophus ciliatus and Lepidodactylus lugubris embryos — Presentation Detail — Celebration of Scholars

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Patterns of apoptosis in the limb paddles of developing Correlophus ciliatus and Lepidodactylus lugubris embryos

Name: Amelia Zietlow
Major: Biology
Hometown: Milwaukee
Faculty Sponsor: Temple Burling
Other Sponsors:
Type of research: Independent research
Funding: NSF

Abstract

The timing, duration, and location of programmed cell death (apoptosis) in developing embryos has a significant impact on resultant structures. In the developing limb paddles of most tetrapods, apoptosis is critical to digit differentiation and the removal of excess interdigital webbing (IDW). In some species, varying amounts of IDW is retained and serves a functional purpose, such as in bats and ducks. While apoptotic activity has been studied in the limb buds of these animals, it has not yet been studied in any squamate reptiles (lizards and snakes), some of which also retain IDW. To address this, this project identified patterns of apoptosis in the developing limbs of two distantly related gecko species, Correlophus ciliatus and Lepidodactylus lugubris, both of which retain an intermediate amount of IDW. Using Lysotracker Red dye, apoptotic activity was visualized in embryos of both species at varying stages of development. The experiments indicated that apoptosis occurs in different locations at different times in the two species; the exact duration of apoptotic activity, however, remains unclear. More experiments with embryos of stages not yet examined can help to clarify the duration of apoptotic activity in the limb paddles. Furthermore, future in situ hybridization experiments can determine what genes are responsible for promoting and inhibiting apoptosis and therefore causing the apoptotic patterns observed in these species.

Poster file