title: Wolbachia Protein TomO Targets nanos mRNA and Restores Germ Stem Cells in Drosophila Sex-lethal Mutants.
abstract: Wolbachia, endosymbiotic bacteria prevalent in invertebrates, manipulate their hosts in a variety of ways: they induce cytoplasmic incompatibility, male lethality, male-to-female transformation, and parthenogenesis. However, little is known about the molecular basis for host manipulation by these bacteria. In Drosophila melanogaster, Wolbachia infection makes otherwise sterile Sex-lethal (Sxl) mutant females capable of producing mature eggs. Through a functional genomic screen for Wolbachia genes with growth-inhibitory effects when expressed in cultured Drosophila cells, we identified the gene WD1278 encoding a novel protein we call toxic manipulator of oogenesis (TomO), which phenocopies some of the Wolbachia effects in Sxl mutant D. melanogaster females. We demonstrate that TomO enhances the maintenance of germ stem cells (GSCs) by elevating Nanos (Nos) expression via its interaction with nos mRNA, ultimately leading to the restoration of germ cell production in Sxl mutant females that are otherwise without GSCs.
authors: Department of Developmental Biology and Neurosciences, Tohoku University Graduate School of Life Sciences, Sendai 980-8577, Japan.
authors: Manabu
authors: M
authors: Ote
authors: Graduate School of Medicine, Osaka University, Suita 565-0871, Japan.
authors: Morio
authors: M
authors: Ueyama
authors: Department of Developmental Biology and Neurosciences, Tohoku University Graduate School of Life Sciences, Sendai 980-8577, Japan. Electronic address: daichan@m.tohoku.ac.jp.
authors: Daisuke
authors: D
authors: Yamamoto
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D029721:Drosophila Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D004331:Drosophila melanogaster / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development / Q000382:microbiology; D005260:Female; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D005854:Germ Cells / Q000378:metabolism; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D016601:RNA-Binding Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D013234:Stem Cells / Q000378:metabolism*; D020577:Wolbachia / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D029721:Drosophila Proteins; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D016601:RNA-Binding Proteins; C067777:Sxl protein, Drosophila; C070574:nos protein, Drosophila