Fig. 1.

Characterization of kit^w34 mutant larvae. (A) AB zebrafish at 4dpf, illustrating wildtype melanophore morphology and patterning. (B) kit^w34 zebrafish at 4dpf, have small, rounded melanophores. Lateral and ventral stripe melanophores are largely missing by this stage. (C–E) kit^w34/kit^b5 complementation analysis. (C) In kit^b5, 6dpf zebrafish, the majority of melanophores have died. (D) While progeny from a homozygous kit^b5 and kit^w34 cross show defects in melanophore morphology and survival, progeny from a kit^w34 and AB cross are rescued and show wildtype melanophore patterning (E). (F, G) In situ analysis for kit mRNA during early melanogenesis. (F) Wildtype zebrafish express kit in the head, anterior trunk and intermediate cell mass (red asterisk) at 23 somites. (G) kit^w34 embryos lack kit expression. H, I) kit^w34 adults have a reduction in melanophores. (H) Wildtype pigment pattern showing three distinct dark stripes on the flank near the dorsal and caudal fins. (I) kit^w34 adult showing reduced overall pigmentation, especially in dorsal areas (arrow) and throughout the dark stripes. The darks stripes are disorganized and the ventral stripe is lost with kit loss-of-function (arrowhead).