title: A protein related to p21-activated kinase (PAK) that is involved in neurogenesis in the Drosophila adult central nervous system.
abstract: Brains are organized by the developmental processes generating them. The embryonic neurogenic phase of Drosophila melanogaster has been studied in detail at the genetic, cellular and molecular level. In contrast, much of what is known of postembryonic brain development has been gathered by neuroanatomical and gene expression studies. The molecular mechanisms underlying cellular diversity and structural organisation in the adult brain, such as the establishment of the correct neuroblast number, the spatial and temporal control of neuroblast proliferation, cell fate determination, and the generation of the precise pattern of neuronal connectivity, are largely unknown. In a screen for viable mutations affecting adult central brain structures, we isolated the mushroom bodies tiny (mbt) gene of Drosophila, which encodes a protein related to p21-activated kinase (PAK). We show that mutations in mbt primarily interfere with the generation or survival of the intrinsic cells (Kenyon cells) of the mushroom body, a paired neuropil structure in the adult brain involved in learning and memory.
authors.affiliation: Lehrstuhl für Genetik, Universität Würzburg, Germany.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Melzig
authors.forename: K H
authors.initials: KH
authors.lastname: Rein
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Schäfer
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Pfister
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Jäckle
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Heisenberg
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Raabe
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D001921:Brain / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology / Q000502:physiology*; D002490:Central Nervous System / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology / Q000502:physiology; D018076:DNA, Complementary; D029721:Drosophila Proteins; D004331:Drosophila melanogaster / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D017344:Genes, Insect; D006801:Humans; D019476:Insect Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009474:Neurons / Q000502:physiology*; D010641:Phenotype; D011494:Protein Kinases; D017346:Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D018076:DNA, Complementary; D029721:Drosophila Proteins; D019476:Insect Proteins; D011494:Protein Kinases; D017346:Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases; C116684:mbt protein, Drosophila