title: Promiscuity in post-transcriptional control of gene expression: Drosophila sex-lethal and its regulatory partnerships.
abstract: The Drosophila RNA-binding protein Sex-lethal (Sxl) is a potent post-transcriptional regulator of gene expression that controls female development. It regulates the expression of key factors involved in sex-specific differences in morphology, behavior, and dosage compensation. Functional Sxl protein is only expressed in female flies, where it binds to U-rich RNA motifs present in its target mRNAs to regulate their fate. Sxl is a very versatile regulator that, by shuttling between the nucleus and the cytoplasm, can regulate almost all aspects of post-transcriptional gene expression including RNA processing, nuclear export, and translation. For these functions, Sxl employs multiple interactions to either antagonize RNA-processing factors or to recruit various coregulators, thus allowing it to establish a female-specific gene expression pattern. Here, we summarize the current knowledge about Sxl function and review recent mechanistic and structural studies that further our understanding of how such a seemingly 'simple' RNA-binding protein can exert this plethora of different functions.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Biochemistry I, University of Regensburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Rebecca
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Moschall
authors.affiliation: Max Planck Research Group at the Malopolska Centre of Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, Krakow, Poland.
authors.forename: Monika
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gaik
authors.affiliation: Institute of Biochemistry I, University of Regensburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Medenbach
mesh_terms: D017398:Alternative Splicing / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D000818:Animals; D004330:Drosophila; D029721:Drosophila Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D008954:Models, Biological; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000235:genetics; D016601:RNA-Binding Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D029721:Drosophila Proteins; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D016601:RNA-Binding Proteins; C067777:Sxl protein, Drosophila
keywords: RNA-binding protein; alternative splicing; post-transcriptional regulation of gene expression; sex determination; sex-lethal; translational control