Regardless of remarkable advances in understanding embryogenesis, we still know very little about why organisms look the way they do. One particularly excellent system for address this question is the diversity of colour patterns among, and within, species of fishes. Identifying the genes and cell behaviour underlying adult morphological characteristics will be crucial for a deeper understanding of normal development and associated disorders. Our previous studies suggested that agouti signalling protein (ASIP) may play a key point in the pigment pattern development of fish. Here , we report on the complete genomic structure of the zebrafish ASIP gene. Using whole mount in situ hybridization, we have traced the expression of ASIP from onset of expression at 24 h post-fertilization through the first week of development. Furthermore, we have used a transgenic approach to further elucidate the role of ASIP on zebrafish pigment pattern development

9th International Congress on the Biology of Fish. 5-9 Julio de 2010, Barcelona

Peer reviewed