Figure 6: The Hippo kinases LATS1 and LATS2 control branching through YAP/TAZ.

(a,b) Macroscopic views of the urogenital system from controls and Lats1/2^UB−/− mutants at P0. Note the bilateral kidney agenesis in double Lats1/2^UB−/− embryos. a, adrenal; g, gonads. (c,d) Branching morphogenesis at E12.5 is severely reduced in Lats1/2^UB−/− embryos compared with controls as seen with whole-mount CALBINDIN immunostaining. Pink arrows point to the UB tips. (e–n) Lats1/2 deletion causes increased nuclear YAP (e–j), and decreased phospho-YAP (k–n) levels in the UB, marked by CALBINDIN. (o,p) Yap and Taz heterozygosity rescues the Lats1/2^UB−/− kidney agenesis phenotype as kidneys form in Lats1/2^UB−/− Yap^UB−/+ and Lats1/2^UB−/− Taz^UB−/+ embryos. Scale bars represent 1 mm (a,b,o,p), 100 μm (c–h,k–n) and 50 μm (i,j).