D-Fos, a target gene of Decapentaplegic signalling with a critical role during Drosophila endoderm induction.
The Drosophila endoderm is patterned by the signals Decapentaplegic and Wingless secreted from the visceral mesoderm. This induction culminates in a precise pattern of spatially restricted expression of labial, a selector gene with a role in cell type specification in the larval midgut. Here, we show that Decapentaplegic signalling induces elevated expression of the Drosophila AP-1 transcription factor D-Fos in a slightly broader endodermal region than labial. This induction occurs in parallel to, and independently of, that of labial. Furthermore, we present evidence that D-Fos is required for labial induction in the embryo as well as for maintenance of labial expression through larval stages; and that D-Fos is critical for cellular differentiation in the larval gut. We propose that Decapentaplegic, by inducing D-Fos, broadly defines an endodermal region which thus becomes predisposed to express labial, and that D-Fos cooperates with signal-activated response factors to confer the precise pattern of labial expression in this region.
Riese
J
J
MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge, UK.
Tremml
G
G
Bienz
M
M
D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D017931:DNA Primers / Q000235:genetics; D004330:Drosophila / Q000196:embryology* / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D029721:Drosophila Proteins; D004707:Endoderm / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; D017344:Genes, Insect; D016762:Genes, fos; D018398:Homeodomain Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D019476:Insect Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D008297:Male; D010641:Phenotype; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D015398:Signal Transduction
D017931:DNA Primers; D029721:Drosophila Proteins; D018398:Homeodomain Proteins; D019476:Insect Proteins; C064196:dpp protein, Drosophila; C059843:lab protein, Drosophila