Proteus Posted December 3, 2009 Share Posted December 3, 2009 As the zygote divides into an embryo, how does the embryo know which genes it is to turn on or off in which cell? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CharonY Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 There are a number of mechanisms and the majority is probably still unknown in detail. Most rely on certain gradient e.g. along developmental axes. One well-studied element is the chromatin state of Hox genes. See for instance: Howard Y. Chang, et al. Science 326, 1206 (2009), for a relatively easy to understand read on the topic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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