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Published Online August 16, 2007
Science DOI: 10.1126/science.1142538

Reports

Submitted on March 14, 2007
Accepted on August 2, 2007

Synchrony Dynamics During Initiation, Failure, and Rescue of the Segmentation Clock

Ingmar H. Riedel-Kruse 1*, Claudia Müller 2, Andrew C. Oates 2*

1 Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics, Pfotenhauerstrasse 108, 01307 Dresden, Germany; current address: California Institute of Technology, MC 139-74, Division of Biology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA.
2 Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics, Pfotenhauerstrasse 108, 01307 Dresden, Germany.

* To whom correspondence should be addressed.
Ingmar H. Riedel-Kruse , E-mail: ingmar{at}caltech.edu
Andrew C. Oates , E-mail: oates{at}mpi-cbg.de

The "segmentation clock" is thought to coordinate sequential segmentation of the body axis in vertebrate embryos. This clock comprises a multi-cellular genetic network of synchronized oscillators, coupled by intercellular Delta/Notch signaling. How this synchrony is established, and how its loss determines the position of segmentation defects in Delta/Notch mutants is unknown. We analyzed the clock’s synchrony dynamics by varying strength and timing of Notch coupling in zebrafish embryos using techniques for quantitative perturbation of gene function. We developed a physical theory based on coupled phase oscillators explaining the observed onset and rescue of segmentation defects, the clock’s robustness against developmental noise, and a critical point beyond which synchrony decays. We conclude that synchrony among these genetic oscillators can be established by simultaneous initiation and self-organization, and that the segmentation defect position is determined by the difference between coupling strength and noise.


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Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)