title: DWnt-4, a novel Drosophila Wnt gene acts downstream of homeotic complex genes in the visceral mesoderm.
abstract: Wnt genes encode putative cell signalling proteins which play crucial roles during development. From a library of DNA fragments associated, in vivo, with Ultrabithorax proteins, we isolated a novel Drosophila Wnt gene, DWnt-4. Neither a paralog nor an ortholog of the gene exist in the current repertoire of full-length Wnt sequences. DWnt-4 maps close (30 kb) to wingless, suggesting that the two Wnt genes derive from a duplication that occurred early in evolution, since they are significantly diverged in sequence and structure. Developmental expression of DWnt-4 partially overlaps that of wingless. The gene is transcribed following a segment polarity-like pattern in the posterior-most cells of each parasegment of the ectoderm, and at two locations that correspond to parasegments 4 and 8 of the visceral mesoderm. The control of DWnt-4 expression in the visceral mesoderm involves a network of regulatory molecules that includes Ultrabithorax and other proteins from the homeotic complex (HOM-C), as well as the TGF-beta decapentaplegic gene product.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Génétique et Physiologie du Développement, Institut de Biologie du Développement de Marseille, CNRS, Parc Scientifique de Luminy, Marseille, France.
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Graba
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Gieseler
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Aragnol
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Laurenti
authors.forename: M C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Mariol
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Berenger
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Sagnier
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Pradel
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D004330:Drosophila / Q000196:embryology / Q000235:genetics*; D029721:Drosophila Proteins; D004627:Embryonic Induction / Q000235:genetics; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; D005801:Genes, Homeobox; D017344:Genes, Insect; D018398:Homeodomain Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D008648:Mesoderm / Q000502:physiology*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D014157:Transcription Factors; D051155:Wnt1 Protein
chemical_list: D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D029721:Drosophila Proteins; D018398:Homeodomain Proteins; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins; D014157:Transcription Factors; C066177:Ubx protein, Drosophila; D051155:Wnt1 Protein; C074622:wg protein, Drosophila