Developmental regulation of the Hox genes during axial morphogenesis in the mouse

The Hox genes confer positional information to the axial and paraxial tissues as they emerge gradually from the posterior aspect of the vertebrate embryo. Hox genes are sequentially activated in time and space, in a way that reflects their organisation into clusters in the genome. Although this co-linearity of expression of the Hox genes has been conserved during evolution, it is a phenomenon that is still not understood at the molecular level. This review aims to bring together recent findings that have advanced our understanding of the regulation of the Hox genes during mouse embryonic development. In particular, we highlight the integration of these transducers of anteroposterior positional information into the genetic network that drives tissue generation and patterning during axial elongation.