Staufen Regulates Eye Development

• Main Author: Cockburn, Diane M.
• Other Authors: Monnier, Philippe
• Language: en_ca
• Published: 2011
• Subjects: Chick; Retina; Eye; Development; Proliferation; 0719
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/1807/30555

Despite their undisputed importance to embryonic growth, the role of mRNA transport proteins in the developing visual system has been widely uncharacterized. Through RNA interference, this study aims to discover the function of Staufen 2 (Stau2), an mRNA transport protein, in chick eye development. When Stau2-miRNA was electroporated into the E1.5 primary optic vesicle, two days later they exhibited a reduction of eye size by 47%, whereas control miRNA did not significantly change eye size. TUNEL, β-III tubulin and BrdU staining were used to analyze the retinal apoptotic, differentiation and proliferative levels respectively, in response to Stau2 knockdown. These data suggest that the small eye is a result of a decrease in proliferation, and not cell death or pre-mature differentiation. Rescue experiments were done with each of the three Stau2 isoforms and confirmed both the direct effect of Stau2-miRNA and the involvement of these isoforms in eye development.