title: A cup full of functions.
abstract: Data from different laboratories have recently indicated that Cup is a multi-functional protein acting both during Drosophila ovary development and early embryogenesis. Cup directly and/or indirectly affects the activity of different mRNAs and proteins to achieve a broad range of biological functions: (1) Cup interacts with Nanos to promote maintenance and survival of the female germ-line stem cells; (2) it binds eIF4E and 3'-UTR-bound factors to repress translation of oskar and nanos mRNAs; (3) it interacts genetically with eIF4E to control translation initiation during ovary development and growth; (4) it may play a role in the control of the phosphorylation status of eIF4E within the developing ovary; finally, (5) it possesses nucleo-cytoplasmic shuttling properties thus pointing to a still uncharacterized function in the cell nucleus. A multi-disciplinary approach, ranging from genetics to proteomics, will be required to shed light on the diverse molecular mechanisms involving Cup and the growing family of its specific interactors.
authors.affiliation: CEINGE-Biotecnologie Avanzate, Napoli, Italy.
authors.forename: Federica
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Piccioni
authors.forename: Vincenzo
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Zappavigna
authors.forename: Arturo C
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Verrotti
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D029721:Drosophila Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D004331:Drosophila melanogaster / Q000196:embryology / Q000235:genetics; D005260:Female; D009866:Oogenesis / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D010053:Ovary / Q000502:physiology*; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D029721:Drosophila Proteins; D012333:RNA, Messenger; C105238:cup protein, Drosophila