Translational repression as a conserved mechanism for the regulation of embryonic polarity.
The mechanisms used to establish embryonic polarity are still largely unknown. A recent paper(1) describes the expression pattern of the gene glp-1, which is required for induction events during development of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. Although glp-1 RNA is found throughout the early embryo, Glp-1 protein is only expressed in anterior cells. This negative translational regulation in posterior cells is shown to be mediated through sequences in the glp-1 3'untranslated region (3'UTR). Thus in nematodes, as in Drosophila, translational repression is one mechanism used to establish the embryonic anterior-posterior axis.
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Whitehead Institute, Cambridge, MA 02142.
D000818:Animals; D017173:Caenorhabditis elegans / Q000196:embryology*; D029742:Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins; D004330:Drosophila / Q000196:embryology; D004625:Embryo, Nonmammalian / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D015801:Helminth Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis; D008562:Membrane Glycoproteins / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D014176:Protein Biosynthesis; D051880:Receptors, Notch
D029742:Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins; C060620:Glp-1 protein, C elegans; D015801:Helminth Proteins; D008562:Membrane Glycoproteins; D051880:Receptors, Notch