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Steroid hormone receptor homologs in development
A E Oro1, K Umesono, R M Evans
1Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Salk Institute for Biological Sciences, La Jolla, California 92138-9216.
Development (Cambridge, England)
|January 1, 1989
Summary
Steroid/thyroid receptors regulate gene networks and are crucial in embryogenesis. Homologs in Drosophila indicate these transcription factors predate vertebrate and invertebrate divergence.
Area of Science:
- Molecular Biology
- Developmental Biology
- Genetics
Background:
- Steroid/thyroid receptor superfamily are ligand-dependent transcription factors.
- These receptors control gene networks via distinct functional domains.
- Their role in embryogenesis is an emerging area of study.
Purpose of the Study:
- To characterize human retinoic acid receptors on model promoters.
- To investigate the evolutionary history of steroid receptors in invertebrates.
Main Methods:
- Isolation and characterization of two human retinoic acid receptors.
- Promoter analysis using model systems.
- Comparative genomics to identify homologs in Drosophila.
Main Results:
- Two human retinoic acid receptors were successfully isolated and characterized.
- Homologs of these receptors were identified in Drosophila, predating species divergence.
- A novel locus, knirps-related (knrl), was identified, closely related to the knirps (kni) gene.
Conclusions:
- Steroid/thyroid receptor superfamily members are evolutionarily ancient, existing before vertebrate/invertebrate divergence.
- The knirps-related (knrl) gene product is a diverged steroid receptor-like molecule.
- knrl exhibits a spatially restricted expression pattern during early development (blastoderm stage).