Expression profiles of wildtype and Shox2 knockout embryonic limbs

The development of vertebrate extremities is a complex process which requires a highly coordinated network of different transcriptional activities. The homeodomain transcription factor Shox2 is a key player in limb formation controlling neural, muscular and skeletal development. Here, we compared gene expression profiles of wildtype and Shox2 knockout limbs using microarray experiments to identify Shox2 target genes. Limbs of E12.5 mouse embryos were dissected, fore- and hindlimbs were pooled and genotyped for RNA extraction. RNA from 3 embryos of 2 different pregnancies (in total 6 embryos) was pooled per genotype (Wildtype and Shox2 Knockout) and compared.