emc has a role in dorsal appendage fate formation in Drosophila oogenesis.
extramacrochaetae (emc) functions during many developmental processes in Drosophila, such as sensory organ formation, sex determination, wing vein differentiation, regulation of eye photoreceptor differentiation, cell proliferation and development of the Malpighian tubules, trachea and muscles in the embryo. It encodes a Helix-Loop-Helix transcription factor that negatively regulates bHLH proteins. We show here that emc mRNA and protein are present throughout oogenesis in a dynamic expression pattern and that emc is involved in the regulation of chorionic appendage formation during late oogenesis. Expression of sense and antisense emc constructs as well as emc follicle cell clones leads to eggs with shorter, thicker dorsal appendages that are closer together at base than in the wild type. We demonstrate that emc lies downstream of fs(1)K10, gurken and EGFR in the Grk/EGFR signalling pathway and that it participates in controlling Broad-Complex expression at late stages of oogenesis.
Papadia
Sofia
S
Institute of Cell and Molecular Biology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH9 3JR, UK.
Tzolovsky
George
G
Zhao
Debiao
D
Leaper
Kevin
K
Clyde
Dorothy
D
Taylor
Paul
P
Asscher
Eva
E
Kirk
Graeme
G
Bownes
Mary
M
D000818:Animals; D030801:Animals, Genetically Modified; D051792:Basic Helix-Loop-Helix Proteins; D002823:Chorion / Q000254:growth & development; D016373:DNA, Antisense / Q000235:genetics; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D004330:Drosophila / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000378:metabolism; D029721:Drosophila Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; D017344:Genes, Insect; D009154:Mutation; D009866:Oogenesis / Q000235:genetics*; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D012097:Repressor Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D015398:Signal Transduction
D051792:Basic Helix-Loop-Helix Proteins; D016373:DNA, Antisense; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D029721:Drosophila Proteins; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D012097:Repressor Proteins; C063577:emc protein, Drosophila