apterous, a gene required for imaginal disc development in Drosophila encodes a member of the LIM family of developmental regulatory proteins.
The apterous (ap) gene is required for the normal development of the wing and haltere imaginal discs in Drosophila melanogaster. ap encodes a new member of the LIM family of developmental regulatory genes. The deduced amino acid sequence of ap predicts a homeo domain and a cysteine/histidine-rich domain known as the LIM domain. In these domains ap is highly similar to the mec-3 and lin-11 proteins of Caenorhabditis elegans and to the vertebrate insulin enhancer-binding protein isl-1. ap is presumably required for transcriptional regulation of genes involved in wing and haltere development. The nature of the defects in homozygous null mutant flies is consistent with the pattern of ap expression in the larval imaginal discs. ap is also expressed in a complex pattern in the embryo, including portions of the peripheral nervous system (PNS) and central nervous system (CNS). A requirement for ap expression in the larval and adult CNS may be the underlying cause of the defects in hormone production and vitellogenesis described for ap mutations.
Department of Cell Biology, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas 77030.
B
B
Cohen
M E
ME
McGuffin
C
C
Pfeifle
D
D
Segal
S M
SM
Cohen
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D002454:Cell Differentiation / Q000235:genetics; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D004251:DNA Transposable Elements / Q000235:genetics; D029721:Drosophila Proteins; D004331:Drosophila melanogaster / Q000196:embryology* / Q000235:genetics; D005260:Female; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation / Q000235:genetics; D005801:Genes, Homeobox / Q000235:genetics*; D018398:Homeodomain Proteins; D060850:LIM-Homeodomain Proteins; D008297:Male; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009154:Mutation / Q000235:genetics; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics*; D014921:Wings, Animal / Q000196:embryology
D004251:DNA Transposable Elements; D029721:Drosophila Proteins; D018398:Homeodomain Proteins; D060850:LIM-Homeodomain Proteins; D014157:Transcription Factors; C074459:ap protein, Drosophila