High impact information on Rx

• The Rx homeobox gene is essential for vertebrate eye development [1].
• The Rx gene family plays an important role in the establishment and/or proliferation of retinal progenitor cells [1].
• DRx is expressed in the embryo in the procephalic region and in the clypeolabrum from stage 8 on and later in the brain and the central nervous system [2].
• Vertebrate Rx is expressed in the prospective eye and forebrain and is required for eye morphogenesis, retinal precursor appearance, and normal forebrain development, indicating that it is an essential regulator of early eye and brain formation [3].
• Thus, our data suggest that drx may be required for the regulation of genes involved in brain morphogenesis and clypeus precursor development [3].

Biological context of Rx

• Finally, we characterize a novel anterior head phenotype and demonstrate that drx is required for clypeus development [3].
• Two other homeobox genes, orthopedia and DRx are clustered in the 57B region along with homeobrain [4].
• The current evidence indicates that homeobrain, DRx and orthopedia form a homeobox gene cluster in which all the members are expressed in specific embryonic brain subregions [4].

Other interactions of Rx

• In addition, the localized brain expression patterns of homeobrain and DRx resemble each other [4].

References