Skip to main content
. 2014 Dec 22;9(12):e115165. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0115165

Figure 1. XNkx6.3 is expressed in the neural plate border ectoderm.

Figure 1

(A) Experimental strategy to verify the expression domain of Nkx6.3 by qPCR. A transverse slice of tissue of the potential neural plate border region of single stage 17 embryos was dissected out and separated sequentially into 7 pieces, which were expected to represent epidermis, placode, neural crest and neural plate identities respectively. The explants were then processed to real-time RT-PCR analysis. E, epidermis; P, placode; NC, neural crest; NP, neural plate. (B) Nkx6.3 is expressed predominantly in the ectoderm. A piece of tissue corresponding to region 3 in (A) was dissected out and separated into surface ectodermal and deep mesodermal parts. The expression of Nkx6.3 and known ectodermal (Keratin, Dlx3 and Msx1) and mesodermal (MyoD) genes were monitored by qPCR. (C) The expression of Nkx6.3 and known neural plate border markers in a representative series of dissected epidermis, placode, neural crest, and neural plate explants from a single embryo at stage 17. The series of explants from each embryo were checked first for the expression of Dlx3, Six1, FoxD3 and Sox2, and only those with relative clean separation of the epidermis, placode, neural crest and neural plate were further analyzed for the expression of Nkx6.3 and additional markers. RE, relative expression.