Cryptorchidism and homeotic transformations of spinal nerves and vertebrae in Hoxa-10 mutant mice

Cryptorchidism and homeotic transformations of spinal nerves and vertebrae in Hoxa-10 mutant mice

F M Rijli,
R Matyas,
M Pellegrini,
A Dierich,
P Gruss,
P Dollé, and
P Chambon

Institut de Génétique et de Biologie Moleculaire et Cellulaire, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique/Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Medicale/Université Louis Pasteur, Collège de France, Illkirch.

Abstract

Homozygous mice mutated by homologous recombination for the AbdB-related Hoxa-10 gene are viable but display homeotic transformations of vertebrae and lumbar spinal nerves. Mutant males exhibit unilateral or bilateral criptorchidism due to developmental abnormalities of the gubernaculum, resulting in abnormal spermatogenesis and sterility. These results reveal an important role of Hoxa-10 in patterning posterior body regions and suggest that Hox genes are involved in specifying regional identity of both segmented and nonovertly segmented structures of the developing body.