Description
This investigation provides a robust multi-dimensional compendium of gene expression data relevant to mouse facial development. It profiles the transcriptome ofectoderm and mesenchyme from the three facial prominences in a time series encompassing their growth and fusion. Analysis of the dataset identified more than 8000 differentially expressed genes comprising dramatically different ectoderm and mesenchyme programs. The mesenchyme programs included many genes identified in earlier analyses as well hundreds of genes not previously implicated in craniofacial development. The ectoderm programs included over a thousand genes that highlight epithelial structure, cell-cell interactions and signaling.