title: The Jak-STAT target Chinmo prevents sex transformation of adult stem cells in the Drosophila testis niche.
abstract: Local signals maintain adult stem cells in many tissues. Whether the sexual identity of adult stem cells must also be maintained was not known. In the adult Drosophila testis niche, local Jak-STAT signaling promotes somatic cyst stem cell (CySC) renewal through several effectors, including the putative transcription factor Chronologically inappropriate morphogenesis (Chinmo). Here, we find that Chinmo also prevents feminization of CySCs. Chinmo promotes expression of the canonical male sex determination factor DoublesexM (Dsx(M)) within CySCs and their progeny, and ectopic expression of DsxM in the CySC lineage partially rescues the chinmo sex transformation phenotype, placing Chinmo upstream of Dsx(M). The Dsx homolog DMRT1 prevents the male-to-female conversion of differentiated somatic cells in the adult mammalian testis, but its regulation is not well understood. Our work indicates that sex maintenance occurs in adult somatic stem cells and that this highly conserved process is governed by effectors of niche signals. PAPERCLIP:
authors.affiliation: Department of Cell Biology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, 725 N. Wolfe Street, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA.
authors.forename: Qing
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, VA 23185, USA.
authors.forename: Matthew
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wawersik
authors.affiliation: Department of Cell Biology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, 725 N. Wolfe Street, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA. Electronic address: matunis@jhmi.edu.
authors.forename: Erika L
authors.initials: EL
authors.lastname: Matunis
mesh_terms: D000375:Aging; D000818:Animals; D002454:Cell Differentiation / Q000502:physiology; D029721:Drosophila Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D004331:Drosophila melanogaster / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental / Q000502:physiology; D053612:Janus Kinases / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D050791:STAT Transcription Factors / Q000378:metabolism*; D019849:Sex Determination Processes / Q000502:physiology*; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000502:physiology; D055153:Stem Cell Niche / Q000502:physiology; D013234:Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology*; D013737:Testis / Q000378:metabolism*; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: C515167:Chinmo protein, Drosophila; D029721:Drosophila Proteins; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins; D050791:STAT Transcription Factors; D014157:Transcription Factors; D053612:Janus Kinases