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A gonad is formed from germ cells and somatic mesodermal cells through their interactions. Its development is coupled with the determination and differentiation of the sex and sex-associated traits. We carried out a large-scale screening of Medaka mutants in which gonadal development is affected. Screening was performed on larvae at 8 days posthatching for abnormal abundance and/or distribution of germ cells detected by the in situ hybridization for olvas (Medaka vasa). We describe here 16 mutants of 13 genes, which are classified into four groups. Group 1, consisting of four mutants of three genes kon, tot) characterised by an increase in germ cell number. An adult tot homozygote fish has the characteristic feature of possessing hypertrophic gonads filled with immature oocytes. Group 2, represented by a single gene (zen) mutant characterized by a gradual loss of germ cells. Group 3, consisting of four mutants of distinct genes (eko, eki, sht, ano) showing irregular clustering of germ cells. Group 4, consisting of seven mutants of five genes (arr, hyo, mzr, hdr, fbk) showing fragmented clusters of germ cells. In some mutants belonging to Groups 1, 3 and 4, the expression level of ftz-f1 (sf-1/Ad4BP) in gonadal somatic cells significantly decreased, suggesting that interaction between somatic and germ cells is affected.

We report here mutations affecting various aspects of liver development and function identified by multiple assays in a systematic mutagenesis screen in Medaka. The 22 identified recessive mutations assigned to 19 complementation groups fell into five phenotypic groups. Group 1, showing defective liver morphogenesis, comprises mutations in four genes, which may be involved in the regulation of growth or patterning of the gut endoderm. Group 2 comprises mutations in three genes that affect the laterality of the liver; in kendama mutants of this group, the laterality of the heart and liver is uncoupled and randomized. Group 3 includes mutations in three genes altering bile color, indicative of defects in hemoglobin-bilirubin metabolism and globin synthesis. Group 4 consists of mutations in three genes, characterized by a decrease in the accumulation of fluorescent metabolite of a phospholipase A(2) substrate, PED6, in the gall bladder. Lipid metabolism or the transport of lipid metabolites may be affected by these mutations. Mutations in Groups 3 and 4 may provide animal models for relevant human diseases. Group 5 mutations in six genes affect the formation of endoderm, endodermal rods and hepatic bud from which the liver develops. These Medaka mutations, identified by morphological and metabolite marker screens, should provide clues to understanding molecular mechanisms underlying formation of a functional liver.

We screened populations of N-ethyl-N-nitrosourea (ENU)-mutagenized Medaka, (Oryzias latipes) for radiation-sensitive mutants to investigate the mechanism of genome stability induced by ionizing radiation in developing embryos. F3 embryos derived from male founders that were homozygous for induced the mutations were irradiated with gamma-rays at the organogenesis stage (48hpf) at a dose that did not cause malformation in wild-type embryos. We screened 2130 F2 pairs and identified three types of mutants with high incidence of radiation-induced curly tailed (ric) malformations using a low dose of irradiation. The homozygous strain from one of these mutants, ric1, which is highly fertile and easy to breed, was established and characterized related to gamma-irradiation response. The ric1 strain also showed higher incidence of malformation and lower hatchability compared to the wild-type CAB strain after gamma-irradiation at the morula and pre-early gastrula stages. We found that the decrease in hatching success after gamma-irradiation, depends on the maternal genotype at the ric1 locus. Terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated deoxy-UTP nick end-labeling assays showed a high frequency of apoptosis in the ric1 embryos immediately after gamma-irradiation at the pre-early gastrula stage but apoptotic cells were not observed before midblastula transition (MBT). The neutral comet assay revealed that the ric1 mutant has a defect in the rapid repair of DNA double-strand breaks induced by gamma-rays. These results suggest that RIC1 is involved in the DNA double strand break repair in embryos from morula to organogenesis stages, and unrepaired DNA double strand breaks in ric1 trigger apoptosis after MBT. These results support the use of the ric1 strain for investigating various biological consequences of DNA double strand breaks in vivo and for sensitive monitoring of genotoxicity related to low dose radiation.

The thymus is an organ for T lymphocyte maturation and is indispensable for the establishment of a highly developed immune system in vertebrates. In order to genetically dissect thymus organogenesis, we carried out a large-scale mutagenesis screening for Medaka mutations affecting recombination activating gene 1 (rag1) expression in the developing thymus. We identified 24 mutations, defining at least 13 genes, which led to a marked reduction of rag1 expression in the thymus. As thymus development depends on pharyngeal arches, we classified those mutations into three classes according to the defects in the pharyngeal arches. Class 1 mutants had no or slight morphological abnormalities in the pharyngeal arches, implying that the mutations may include defects in such thymus-specific events as lymphocyte development and thymic epithelial cell maturation. Class 2 mutants had abnormally shaped pharyngeal arches. Class 3 mutants showed severely attenuated pharyngeal arch development. In Class 2 and Class 3 mutants, the defects in thymus development may be due to abnormal pharyngeal arch development. Those mutations are expected to be useful for identifying the molecular mechanisms underlying thymus organogenesis.

12 páginas, 5 figuras, 1 tabla.-- et al., In a large scale mutagenesis screen of Medaka we identified 60 recessive zygotic mutations that affect retina development. Based on the onset and type of phenotypic abnormalities, the mutants were grouped into five categories: the first includes 11 mutants that are affected in neural plate and optic vesicle formation. The second group comprises 15 mutants that are impaired in optic vesicle growth. The third group includes 18 mutants that are affected in optic cup development. The fourth group contains 13 mutants with defects in retinal differentiation. 12 of these have smaller eyes, whereas one mutation results in enlarged eyes. The fifth group consists of three mutants with defects in retinal pigmentation. The collection of mutants will be used to address the molecular genetic mechanisms underlying vertebrate eye formation., This work was supported by the Roche Research Foundation (F.L.) the Japanese Agency for Science and Technology (JST) (R.Q., M.C., S.W.), the Company of Biologists Ltd (F.D.B.), the Boehringer Ingelheim Foundation (C.G.), the Marie Curie Foundation (J-R. M-M.) and through grants from the DFG, EC (J.W) and HFSP (H.K, J.W.).

A large-scale mutagenesis screen was performed in Medaka to identify genes acting in diverse developmental processes. Mutations were identified in homozygous F3 progeny derived from ENU-treated founder males. In addition to the morphological inspection of live embryos, other approaches were used to detect abnormalities in organogenesis and in specific cellular processes, including germ cell migration, nerve tract formation, sensory organ differentiation and DNA repair. Among 2031 embryonic lethal mutations identified, 312 causing defects in organogenesis were selected for further analyses. From these, 126 mutations were characterized genetically and assigned to 105 genes. The similarity of the development of Medaka and zebrafish facilitated the comparison of mutant phenotypes, which indicated that many mutations in Medaka cause unique phenotypes so far unrecorded in zebrafish. Even when mutations of the two fish species cause a similar phenotype such as one-eyed-pinhead or parachute, more genes were found in Medaka than in zebrafish that produced the same phenotype when mutated. These observations suggest that many Medaka mutants represent new genes and, therefore, are important complements to the collection of zebrafish mutants that have proven so valuable for exploring genomic function in development.

We screened for mutations affecting retinotectal axonal projection in Medaka, Oryzias latipes. In wild-type Medaka embryos, all the axons of retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) project to the contralateral tectum, such that the topological relationship of the retinal field is maintained. We labeled RGC axons using DiI/DiO at the nasodorsal and temporoventral positions of the retina, and screened for mutations affecting the pattern of stereotypic projections to the tectum. By screening 184 mutagenized haploid genomes, seven mutations in five genes causing defects in axonal pathfinding were identified, whereas mutations affecting the topographic projection of RGC axons were not found. The mutants were grouped into two classes according to their phenotypes. In mutants of Class I, a subpopulation of the RGC axons branched out either immediately after leaving the eye or after reaching the midline, and this axonal subpopulation projected to the ipsilateral tectum. In mutants of Class II, subpopulations of RGC axons branched out after crossing the midline and projected aberrantly. These mutants will provide clues to understanding the functions of genes essential for axonal pathfinding, which may be conserved or partly divergent among vertebrates.

The forebrain, consisting of the telencephalon and diencephalon, is essential for processing sensory information. To genetically dissect formation of the forebrain in vertebrates, we carried out a systematic screen for mutations affecting morphogenesis of the forebrain in Medaka. Thirty-three mutations defining 25 genes affecting the morphological development of the forebrain were grouped into two classes. Class 1 mutants commonly showing a decrease in forebrain size, were further divided into subclasses 1A to 1D. Class 1A mutation (1 gene) caused an early defect evidenced by the lack of bf1 expression, Class 1B mutations (6 genes) patterning defects revealed by the aberrant expression of regional marker genes, Class 1C mutation (1 gene) a defect in a later stage, and Class 1D (3 genes) a midline defect analogous to the zebrafish one-eyed pinhead mutation. Class 2 mutations caused morphological abnormalities in the forebrain without considerably affecting its size, Class 2A mutations (6 genes) caused abnormalities in the development of the ventricle, Class 2B mutations (2 genes) severely affected the anterior commissure, and Class 2C (6 genes) mutations resulted in a unique forebrain morphology. Many of these mutants showed the compromised sonic hedgehog expression in the zona-limitans-intrathalamica (zli), arguing for the importance of this structure as a secondary signaling center. These mutants should provide important clues to the elucidation of the molecular mechanisms underlying forebrain development, and shed new light on phylogenically conserved and divergent functions in the developmental process.

The development of germ cells has been intensively studied in Medaka (Oryzias latipes). We have undertaken a large-scale screen to identify mutations affecting the development of primordial germ cells (PGCs) in Medaka. Embryos derived from mutagenized founder fish were screened for an abnormal distribution or number of PGCs at embryonic stage 27 by RNA in situ hybridization for the Medaka vasa homologue (olvas). At this stage, PGCs coalesce into two bilateral vasa-expressing foci in the ventrolateral regions of the trunk after their migration and group organization. Nineteen mutations were identified from a screen corresponding to 450 mutagenized haploid genomes. Eleven of the mutations caused altered PGC distribution. Most of these alterations were associated with morphological abnormalities and could be grouped into four phenotypic classes: Class 1, PGCs dispersed into bilateral lines; Class 2, PGCs dispersed in a region more medial than that in Class 1; Class 3, PGCs scattered laterally and over the yolk sac area; and Class 4, PGCs clustered in a single median focus. Eight mutations caused a decrease in the number of PGCs. This decrease was observed in the offspring of heterozygous mothers, indicating the contribution of a maternal factor in determining PGC abundance. Taken together, these mutations should prove useful in identifying molecular mechanisms underlying the early PGC development and migration.