The novel gene glaikit, is expressed during neurogenesis in the Drosophila melanogaster embryo

A novel gene glaikit (gkt) has been identified which is expressed in the delaminating neuroblasts of the D. melanogaster embryonic central nervous system. At the earliest stages of embryonic development the expression of glaikit was ubiquitous, but by the time the neuroblasts are delaminating gkt expression became restricted to neuroblasts and a few ganglion mother cells. The gkt gene has no characterized homologues and encodes no previously described protein motifs. There are, however, evolutionary conserved predicted genes present in S. pombe, S. cerevisiae and C. elegans. Ectopic neuroblasts induced in either Notch or Delta mutant backgrounds also showed expression of glaikit.