The Drosophila peanut gene is required for cytokinesis and encodes a protein similar to yeast putative bud neck filament proteins.
We have identified a Drosophila gene, peanut (pnut), that is related in sequence to the CDC3, CDC10, CDC11, and CDC12 genes of S. cerevisiae. These genes are required for cytokinesis, and their products are present at the bud neck during cell division. We find that pnut is also required for cytokinesis: in pnut mutants, imaginal tissues fail to proliferate and instead develop clusters of large, multinucleate cells. Pnut protein is localized to the cleavage furrow of dividing cells during cytokinesis and to the intercellular bridge connecting postmitotic daughter cells. In addition to its role in cytokinesis, pnut displays genetic interactions with seven in absentia, a gene required for neuronal fate determination in the compound eye, suggesting that pnut may have pleiotropic functions. Our results suggest that this class of proteins is involved in aspects of cytokinesis that have been conserved between flies and yeast.
Neufeld
T P
TP
Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, Berkeley 94720-3200.
Rubin
G M
GM
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D002455:Cell Division; D002460:Cell Line; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D018076:DNA, Complementary / Q000032:analysis; D004330:Drosophila / Q000166:cytology / Q000235:genetics*; D029721:Drosophila Proteins; D004742:Enhancer Elements, Genetic; D005260:Female; D005656:Fungal Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D015723:Gene Library; D005800:Genes, Fungal; D017344:Genes, Insect; D007814:Larva / Q000166:cytology / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008840:Microfilament Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D011506:Proteins / Q000032:analysis / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics*; D012441:Saccharomyces cerevisiae / Q000235:genetics; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid
D018076:DNA, Complementary; D029721:Drosophila Proteins; D005656:Fungal Proteins; D008840:Microfilament Proteins; D011506:Proteins; C087195:pnut protein, Drosophila