Eomesodermin is an essential early gene in Xenopus mesoderm formation and shows a morphogen-like response to activin. Here we defne the regions of the Eomesodermin promoter required for mesodermal expression and for concentration-dependent response to activin. We find an activin response element (ARE) located between 25.6 and 25.0 kb which contains two critical FAST2 binding sites. The ARE alone is necessary and sufficient for concentration-dependent response to activin. A 5.6 kb promoter recapitulates Eomes expression in normal mesoderm cells. A repressor element extinguishes Eomes expression in the endoderm. We relate our results to mesoderm patterning in early Xenopus development and to a mechanism of morphogen gradient response.

Item Type:	Refereed Article
Keywords:	mesoderm induction, T-box transcription factor, embryogenesis
Research Division:	Biological Sciences
Research Group:	Genetics
Research Field:	Developmental genetics (incl. sex determination)
Objective Division:	Expanding Knowledge
Objective Group:	Expanding knowledge
Objective Field:	Expanding knowledge in the biological sciences
UTAS Author:	Stennard, FA (Dr Fiona Stennard)
ID Code:	99862
Year Published:	2000
Deposited By:	Menzies Institute for Medical Research
Deposited On:	2015-04-13
Last Modified:	2015-05-05
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