The ParaHox gene cluster is the evolutionary sister to the Hox gene cluster. It also seems to play a role in patterning aspects of the anterior-posterior axis of embryos like its Hox sister.
We are investigating how the ParaHox genes are regulated in the basal chordate lineages of amphioxus and sea squirts as a means to understand the fundamental mechanisms controlling these genes in chordates.
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- Garstang, M.G. & Ferrier, D.E.K. Amphioxus SYCP1: a case of retrogene replacement and co-option of regulatory elements adjacent to the ParaHox cluster. Development Genes and Evolution (2018) 228(1), 13-30.
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- Osborne, P.W. and Ferrier, D.E.K. Chordate Hox and ParaHox gene clusters differ dramatically in their repetitive element content. Molecular Biology and Evolution (2010) 27(2), 217-220.
- Osborne, P.W., Benoit, G., Laudet, V., Schubert , M. and Ferrier, D.E.K. Differential regulation of ParaHox genes by retinoic acid in the invertebrate chordate amphioxus (Branchiostoma floridae). Developmental Biology, 327, 252-262.
- Ferrier, D.E.K., Dewar, K., Cook, A., Chang, J.L., Hill-Force, A., and Amemiya, C. The chordate ParaHox cluster. Current Biology (2005) 15, R820-R822.