Comparison of the expression patterns of several fibroblast growth factors during chick gastrulation and neurulation.

The fibroblast growth factor family consists of a large number of secreted polypeptide growth factors. The developmental importance of the family has been highlighted in many studies, which serve to underscore their role as local instructive signals directing diverse processes in the developing embryo. We wished to characterize and compare the expression patterns of nine members of the fibroblast growth factor family in the chick embryo. In this study, we survey the expression patterns of fgf-2, -3, -4, -8, -10, -12, -13, -14 and -18 during gastrula and neurula stages (Hamburger and Hamilton stages: 4-13). As well as providing a comparison of the expression patterns of those fibroblast growth factors already published, we provide new data on the expression patterns of some of these genes at early stages.