James Karen E, Berg Celeste A
Department of Genome Sciences, Box 357730, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195-7730, USA.
Gene Expr Patterns. 2003 Oct;3(5):629-34. doi: 10.1016/s1567-133x(03)00136-4.
A central question in biology is how developmental mechanisms are altered to bring about morphological evolution. Drosophilids boast a remarkable diversity in eggshell-appendage number-from as few as one to as many as nine, depending on the species. Appendage patterning in Drosophila melanogaster is well characterized, inviting candidate-gene-based approaches that identify the developmental mechanisms underlying Drosophilid eggshell diversity. Previous studies show that a combination of Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and TGFbeta/BMP2,4 Decapentaplegic (DPP) signaling determines appendage fate in D. melanogaster. Broad-Complex expression integrates EGFR and DPP signaling and predicts future appendage position. Here we present our confocal analyses of BR-C immunofluorescence and appendage morphogenesis in Drosophila melanogaster (two appendages) and Drosophila virilis (four appendages). Our comparison suggests that differences in BR-C patterns among Drosophilids may be strongly influenced by anterior-posterior information.
生物学中的一个核心问题是发育机制如何改变以实现形态进化。果蝇的卵壳附属物数量具有显著的多样性——根据物种不同，少则一个，多则九个。黑腹果蝇的附属物模式已得到充分表征，这促使基于候选基因的方法得以开展，以确定果蝇卵壳多样性背后的发育机制。先前的研究表明，表皮生长因子受体（EGFR）和转化生长因子β/骨形态发生蛋白2、4（DPP）信号的组合决定了黑腹果蝇附属物的命运。Broad-Complex的表达整合了EGFR和DPP信号，并预测未来附属物的位置。在这里，我们展示了我们对黑腹果蝇（两个附属物）和粗壮果蝇（四个附属物）的BR-C免疫荧光和附属物形态发生的共聚焦分析。我们的比较表明，果蝇之间BR-C模式的差异可能受到前后信息的强烈影响。
