Broihier H T, Moore L A, Van Doren M, Newman S, Lehmann R
Skirball Institute, New York University Medical Center, NY, NY 10016, USA.
Development. 1998 Feb;125(4):655-66. doi: 10.1242/dev.125.4.655.
In Drosophila as well as many vertebrate systems, germ cells form extraembryonically and migrate into the embryo before navigating toward gonadal mesodermal cells. How the gonadal mesoderm attracts migratory germ cells is not understood in any system. We have taken a genetic approach to identify genes required for germ cell migration in Drosophila. Here we describe the role of zfh-1 in germ cell migration to the gonadal mesoderm. In zfh-1 mutant embryos, the initial association of germ cells and gonadal mesoderm is blocked. Loss of zfh-1 activity disrupts the development of two distinct mesodermal populations: the caudal visceral mesoderm and the gonadal mesoderm. We demonstrate that the caudal visceral mesoderm facilitates the migration of germ cells from the endoderm to the mesoderm. Zfh-1 is also expressed in the gonadal mesoderm throughout the development of this tissue. Ectopic expression of Zfh-1 is sufficient to induce additional gonadal mesodermal cells and to alter the temporal course of gene expression within these cells. Finally, through analysis of a tinman zfh-1 double mutant, we show that zfh-1 acts in conjunction with tinman, another homeodomain protein, in the specification of lateral mesodermal derivatives, including the gonadal mesoderm.
在果蝇以及许多脊椎动物系统中，生殖细胞在胚胎外形成，并在向性腺中胚层细胞迁移之前迁移到胚胎中。在任何系统中，性腺中胚层如何吸引迁移的生殖细胞尚不清楚。我们采用遗传学方法来鉴定果蝇中生殖细胞迁移所需的基因。在这里，我们描述了zfh - 1在生殖细胞向性腺中胚层迁移中的作用。在zfh - 1突变体胚胎中，生殖细胞与性腺中胚层的初始关联被阻断。zfh - 1活性的丧失扰乱了两个不同中胚层群体的发育：尾侧内脏中胚层和性腺中胚层。我们证明尾侧内脏中胚层促进生殖细胞从内胚层向中胚层的迁移。在该组织的整个发育过程中，zfh - 1也在性腺中胚层中表达。Zfh - 1的异位表达足以诱导额外的性腺中胚层细胞，并改变这些细胞内基因表达的时间进程。最后，通过对tinman zfh - 1双突变体的分析，我们表明zfh - 1与另一种同源结构域蛋白tinman共同作用，参与包括性腺中胚层在内的侧中胚层衍生物的特化。
