Investigation of Wnt Pathway Genes in a Highly Regenerative Marine Invertebrate

Abstract

Colonial ascidians are the closest known relatives to vertebrates that retain whole body regeneration. Understanding molecular pathways involved in regeneration in a diverse range of organisms will provide insights into evolutionary changes in regeneration. Specifically, our research explores Wnt signaling in the colonial ascidian Botrylloides violaceus; this highly conserved pathway is universally involved in studied animals with any regenerative ability. A recent rough draft genome for B. violaceus reveals multiple putative ligands, receptors, and downstream effectors from the Wnt pathway. Primers designed from the draft genome are being used in PCR to validate these predicted genes. Future studies will use qPCR to track gene expression of different Wnt pathway members through regeneration.Support or Funding InformationThe Frost Fund, College of Science and Mathematics at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo