Related Experiment Video
Updated: Dec 10, 2025
Application of MultiColor FlpOut Technique to Study High Resolution Single Cell Morphologies and Cell Interactions of Glia in Drosophila
Published on: October 20, 2017
Amalgam regulates the receptor tyrosine kinase pathway through Sprouty in glial cell development in the Drosophila
Majd M Ariss1, Alexander R Terry1, Abul B M M K Islam2
1Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, College of Medicine, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60607, USA.
Abstract:
The receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) pathway plays an essential role in development and disease by controlling cell proliferation and differentiation. Here, we profile the Drosophila larval brain by single-cell RNA-sequencing and identify Amalgam (Ama), which encodes a cell adhesion protein of the immunoglobulin IgLON family, as regulating the RTK pathway activity during glial cell development. Depletion of Ama reduces cell proliferation, affects glial cell type composition and disrupts the blood-brain barrier (BBB), which leads to hemocyte infiltration and neuronal death. We show that Ama depletion lowers RTK activity by upregulating Sprouty (Sty), a negative regulator of the RTK pathway. Knockdown of Ama blocks oncogenic RTK signaling activation in the Drosophila glioma model and halts malignant transformation. Finally, knockdown of a human ortholog of Ama, LSAMP, results in upregulation of SPROUTY2 in glioblastoma cell lines, suggesting that the relationship between Ama and Sty is conserved.
