Original Article
Copyright ©2011 Baishideng Publishing Group Co., Limited. All rights reserved.
World J Gastroenterol. Oct 28, 2011; 17(40): 4479-4487
Published online Oct 28, 2011. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v17.i40.4479
Expression and localization of paxillin in rat pancreas during development
Jing Guo, Li-Jie Liu, Li Yuan, Ning Wang, Wei De
Jing Guo, Li Yuan, Ning Wang, Wei De, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210029, Jiangsu Province, China
Li-Jie Liu, Department of Physiology, Southeast University, Nanjing 210009, Jiangsu Province, China
Author contributions: Guo J and Liu LJ performed the majority of the experiments; Yuan L and Wang N provided vital reagents and analytical tools and were also involved in editing the manuscript; De W designed the study and wrote the manuscript; all authors read and approved the final manuscript.
Supported by The National Natural Science Foundation of China, Grant No. 81070620; International Cooperation Project of Jiangsu Province, Grant No. BK2007117 and BZ2008062
Correspondence to: Wei De, MD, PhD, Professor of Molecular Biology, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210029, Jiangsu Province, China. dewei@njmu.edu.cn
Telephone: +86-25-86862728 Fax: +86-25-86862728
Received: December 21, 2010
Revised: February 18, 2011
Accepted: February 25, 2011
Published online: October 28, 2011
Abstract

AIM: To investigate the expression and localization of paxillin in rat pancreas during development.

METHODS: Pancreata from Sprague Dawley rat fetuses, embryos, young animals, and adult animals were used in this study. Expression levels of paxillin in pancreata of different development stages were detected by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction and Western blotting. To identify the cell location of paxillin in the developing rat pancreas, immunohistochemistry and double-immunofluorescent staining were performed using antibodies for specific cell markers and paxillin, respectively.

RESULTS: The highest paxillin mRNA level was detected at E15.5 (embryo day 15.5) following a decrease in the later developmental periods (P < 0.05 vs E18.5, P0 and adult, respectively), and a progressively increased paxillin protein expression through the transition from E15.5 to adult was detected. The paxillin positive staining was mainly localized in rat islets of Langerhans at each stage tested during pancreas development.

CONCLUSION: The dynamic expression of paxillin in rat pancreas from different stages indicates that paxillin might be involved in some aspects of pancreatic development.

Keywords: Pancreas development, Islet remodeling, Paxillin, Cell adhesion, Migration