Rehorn K P, Thelen H, Michelson A M, Reuter R
Institut für Genetik, Universität zu Köln, Germany.
Development. 1996 Dec;122(12):4023-31. doi: 10.1242/dev.122.12.4023.
In vertebrates, transcriptional regulators of the GATA family appear to have a conserved function in differentiation and organ development. GATA-1, -2 and -3 are required for different aspects of hematopoiesis, while GATA-4, -5 and -6 are expressed in various organs of endodermal origin, such as intestine and liver, and are implicated in endodermal differentiation. Here we report that the Drosophila gene serpent (srp) encodes the previously described GATA factor ABF. The multiple functions of srp in Drosophila suggest that it is an ortholog of the entire vertebrate Gata family. srp is required for the differentiation and morphogenesis of the endodermal gut. Here we show that it is also essential for Drosophila hematopoiesis and for the formation of the fat body, the insect organ analogous to the liver. These findings imply that some aspects of the molecular mechanisms underlying blood cell development as well as endodermal differentiation are early acquisitions of metazoan evolution and may be common to most higher animals.
在脊椎动物中，GATA家族的转录调节因子在分化和器官发育过程中似乎具有保守功能。造血作用的不同方面需要GATA-1、-2和-3，而GATA-4、-5和-6则在内胚层起源的各种器官（如肠道和肝脏）中表达，并与内胚层分化有关。我们在此报告，果蝇基因serpent（srp）编码先前描述的GATA因子ABF。srp在果蝇中的多种功能表明它是整个脊椎动物Gata家族的直系同源基因。srp是内胚层肠道分化和形态发生所必需的。我们在此表明，它对于果蝇造血作用以及脂肪体（类似于肝脏的昆虫器官）的形成也至关重要。这些发现意味着血细胞发育以及内胚层分化背后分子机制的某些方面是后生动物进化早期获得的，并且可能为大多数高等动物所共有。
