title: Regulatory network for cell shape changes during Drosophila ventral furrow formation.
abstract: Rapid and sequential cell shape changes take place during the formation of the ventral furrow (VF) at the beginning of Drosophila gastrulation. At the cellular level, this morphogenetic event demands close coordination of the proteins involved in actin cytoskeletal reorganization. In order to construct a regulatory network that describes these cell shape changes, we have used published genetic and molecular data for 18 genes encoding transcriptional regulators and signaling pathway components. Based on the dynamic behavior of this network we explored the hypothesis that the combination of three recognizable phenotypes describing wild type or mutant cell types, during VF invagination, correspond to different activation states of a specific set of these gene products, which are point attractors of the regulatory network. From our results, we recognize missing components in the regulatory network and suggest alternative pathways in the regulation of cell shape changes during VF formation.
authors.affiliation: Centro de Modelamiento Matemático, UMR-CNRS 2071, Universidad de Chile, Casilla 170-3, Santiago, Chile.
authors.forename: Julio
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Aracena
authors.forename: Mauricio
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: González
authors.forename: Alejandro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Zuñiga
authors.forename: Marco A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Mendez
authors.forename: Verónica
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Cambiazo
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D048430:Cell Shape / Q000235:genetics*; D004330:Drosophila / Q000196:embryology* / Q000235:genetics; D047108:Embryonic Development / Q000235:genetics; D005775:Gastrula / Q000166:cytology*; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; D017344:Genes, Insect; D008957:Models, Genetic; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000235:genetics