title: Wingless signaling induces nautilus expression in the ventral mesoderm of the Drosophila embryo.
abstract: The segregation of founder cells from the somatic mesoderm is a prerequisite for the formation of body wall muscles in the Drosophila embryo. The myogenic basic helix-loop-helix protein, Nautilus (Nau), is expressed in a subset of these founder cells in medial and lateral positions in the somatic mesoderm. Mutations in the wingless (wg) gene, which encodes a secreted growth factor, lead to the complete loss of Nau-expressing medial muscle precursor cell clusters, but not lateral clusters. Using the GAL4/UAS system, we demonstrate that the wg-derived signal can originate from either ectoderm or mesoderm to influence nau expression. By using a temperature-sensitive wg allele, we also show that wg function is required during and after gastrulation for the formation of Nau-expressing medial muscle precursor cell clusters. Our results, combined with recent studies from chick, suggest a conserved role for Wg signaling pathways during muscle development.
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular Biology and Oncology, Hamon Center for Basic Cancer Research, The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas 75235-9148, USA.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ranganayakulu
authors.forename: R A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Schulz
authors.forename: E N
authors.initials: EN
authors.lastname: Olson
mesh_terms: D000483:Alleles; D000818:Animals; D003433:Crosses, Genetic; D004330:Drosophila; D029721:Drosophila Proteins; D004475:Ectoderm / Q000378:metabolism; D004625:Embryo, Nonmammalian; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental / Q000235:genetics; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D017403:In Situ Hybridization; D008648:Mesoderm / Q000378:metabolism*; D009124:Muscle Proteins; D009132:Muscles / Q000166:cytology / Q000196:embryology* / Q000378:metabolism; D009154:Mutation; D014176:Protein Biosynthesis; D011506:Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D015398:Signal Transduction; D013696:Temperature; D014157:Transcription Factors; D051155:Wnt1 Protein
chemical_list: D029721:Drosophila Proteins; D009124:Muscle Proteins; D011506:Proteins; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins; D014157:Transcription Factors; D051155:Wnt1 Protein; C074622:wg protein, Drosophila; C066817:nau protein, Drosophila