Melanophore cell morphology changes in enz mutant embryos. (A, B) At 27 hpf, wild-type melanophores are large, stellate and well-pigmented (A). enz melanophores are also large and stellate at this stage, but are pale compared to wildtype (B). (C, D) By 31 hpf, enz melanophore begin to transition to a punctate morphology (D), while wild-type melanophores remain large with many processes (C). (E, F) Wild-type (E) and enz mutant (F) embryos at 34.5 hpf. The morphological transition of melanophores in enz homozygotes continues in a rostro-caudal wave and is complete by approximately 48 hpf. (G–J) At 36 hpf, melanosomes are distributed throughout the cytoplasm of wild-type melanophores, reflecting the stellate morphology of these cells (G). (H) dct mRNA (red) is likewise distributed in the extensive processes of wild-type cells (arrowheads). Punctate distribution of melanosomes (I) and dct mRNA (J, red) in enzos18 mutant melanophores is identical at 36 hpf reflecting cell shape change.
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