Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 26, 2025
Protocols for Visualizing Steroidogenic Organs and Their Interactive Organs with Immunostaining in the Fruit Fly Drosophila melanogaster
Published on: April 14, 2017
FKBP39 Controls the Larval Stage JH Activity and Development in Drosophila melanogaster
Xinyu Wang1,2, Ying Zhou1,2, Jianwen Guan1,2
1Joint International Research Laboratory of Agriculture and Agri-Product Safety, the Ministry of Education of China, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225009, China.
Abstract:
FK506-binding protein 39kD (FKBP39) localizes in the nucleus and contains multiple functional domains. Structural analysis suggests that FKBP39 might function as a transcriptional factor and control juvenile hormone (JH) activity. Here, we show that FKBP39 expresses at a high level and localizes in the nucleolus of fat body cells during the first two larval stages and early third larval stage. The fkbp39 mutant displays delayed larval-pupal transition and an increased expression of Kr-h1, the main mediator of the JH pathway, at the early third larval stage. Moreover, the fkbp39 mutant has a fertility defect that is independent of JH activity. Interestingly, the expression of rp49, the most widely used reference gene for qRT-PCR in Drosophila, significantly decreased in the fkbp39 mutant, suggesting that FKBP39 might regulate ribosome assembly. Taken together, our data demonstrate the expression pattern and physiological roles of FKBP39 in Drosophila.
