Sagasti A, Hobert O, Troemel E R, Ruvkun G, Bargmann C I
Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Department of Anatomy and Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of California, San Francisco, California 94143-0452 USA.
Genes Dev. 1999 Jul 15;13(14):1794-806. doi: 10.1101/gad.13.14.1794.
The Caenorhabditis elegans AWA, AWB, and AWC olfactory neurons are each required for the recognition of a specific subset of volatile odorants. lim-4 mutants express an AWC reporter gene inappropriately in the AWB olfactory neurons and fail to express an AWB reporter gene. The AWB cells are morphologically transformed toward an AWC fate in lim-4 mutants, adopting cilia and axon morphologies characteristic of AWC. AWB function is also transformed in these mutants: Rather than mediating the repulsive behavioral responses appropriate for AWB, the AWB neurons mediate attractive responses, like AWC. LIM-4 is a predicted LIM homeobox gene that is expressed in AWB and a few other head neurons. Ectopic expression of LIM-4 in the AWC neuron pair is sufficient to force those cells to adopt an AWB fate. The AWA nuclear hormone receptor ODR-7 described previously also represses AWC genes, as well as inducing AWA genes. We propose that the LIM-4 and ODR-7 transcription factors function to diversify C. elegans olfactory neuron identities, driving them from an AWC-like state into alternative fates.
秀丽隐杆线虫的AWA、AWB和AWC嗅觉神经元对于识别特定的挥发性气味剂亚组来说都是必需的。lim-4突变体在AWB嗅觉神经元中不恰当地表达了一个AWC报告基因,并且无法表达一个AWB报告基因。在lim-4突变体中,AWB细胞在形态上转变为AWC命运,采用了AWC特有的纤毛和轴突形态。这些突变体中的AWB功能也发生了转变:AWB神经元不再介导适合AWB的排斥性行为反应,而是介导吸引性反应,就像AWC一样。LIM-4是一个预测的LIM同源框基因,在AWB和其他一些头部神经元中表达。在AWC神经元对中异位表达LIM-4足以迫使这些细胞采用AWB命运。之前描述的AWA核激素受体ODR-7也会抑制AWC基因,同时诱导AWA基因。我们提出,LIM-4和ODR-7转录因子的作用是使秀丽隐杆线虫的嗅觉神经元身份多样化,将它们从类似AWC的状态转变为其他命运。