Figure 7

Lbx2 is strongly expressed throughout epididymal development. Top panel: schematic representation of the three regions of the epididymis and of the 5 segments of the caput. In situ hybridization experiments were performed on six μm paraffin sections of paraformaldehyde-fixed mouse epididymis using DIG-labeled antisense (A, B, D-N) and sense (C, O) Lbx2 cRNA probes. Lbx2 mRNA was detected by immunostaining using an alkaline phosphatase-coupled anti-DIG antibody (appears as a blue-purplish staining). Tissues were counterstained with Neutral Red to visualize nuclei. Lbx2 expression was assessed at different developmental stages, E18 (A, B), P1 (D-F), P5 (G-I), P34 (J-L), P70 (M, N), and in the three regions, caput (A, D, G, J, M), corpus (B, E, H, K, N), cauda (F, I, L) of the epididymis. No significant signal was detected with a sense probe as shown in the E18 (C) and adult (O) sections (- CTL). Magnifications: 100× (C, F, O); 200× (A, B, D, E, G, H, K, M); 400× (I, J, L, N).