DEAF-1 function is essential for the early embryonic development of Drosophila.
The Drosophila protein DEAF-1 is a sequence-specific DNA binding protein that was isolated as a putative cofactor of the Hox protein Deformed (Dfd). In this study, we analyze the effects of loss or gain of DEAF-1 function on Drosophila development. Maternal/zygotic mutations of DEAF-1 largely result in early embryonic arrest prior to the expression of zygotic segmentation genes, although a few embryos develop into larvae with segmentation defects of variable severity. Overexpression of DEAF-1 protein in embryos can induce defects in migration/closure of the dorsal epidermis, and overexpression in adult primordia can strongly disrupt the development of eye or wing. The DEAF-1 protein associates with many discrete sites on polytene chromosomes, suggesting that DEAF-1 is a rather general regulator of gene expression.
Division of Biology, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093-0349, USA.
Alexey
A
Veraksa
James
J
Kennison
William
W
McGinnis
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D002875:Chromosomes; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D004330:Drosophila / Q000196:embryology* / Q000235:genetics; D029721:Drosophila Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009154:Mutation; D009687:Nuclear Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D010641:Phenotype; D017434:Protein Structure, Tertiary
D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; C485477:Deaf1 protein, Drosophila; D029721:Drosophila Proteins; D009687:Nuclear Proteins