Studies in mice help to identify genes critical for mastication muscles in development

 Studies conducted in mice lacking Krox 20 exhibit a significant reduction of primary jaw opening muscles, like anterior digastric and mylohyoid, no changes in mastication muscles were notified. Mice lacking MyoR and capsulin display a deficit in the four muscles of mastication. Although primary jaw opening muscles remain normal. One of the characteristics of tongue myogenesis is that myogenic precursor cells undergo long-rage migration from the occipital somites to tongue primordium.

Tongue muscle derived from the same as limb and trunk muscles. Programs controlling myogenesis depend on development of the origin of the muscles.