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Positional signaling by hedgehog in Drosophila imaginal disc development
1Laboratory of Molecular Genetics, National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland 20892-2785.
Development (Cambridge, England)
|January 1, 1995
Summary
A dominant gain-of-function mutation in the segment polarity gene hedgehog causes ectopic hedgehog mRNA expression. This leads to anterior wing overgrowth, distal wing structure duplication, and malformations in other imaginal discs.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Biology
- Genetics
- Molecular Biology
Background:
- The segment polarity gene hedgehog is crucial for establishing anterior-posterior patterning in insect imaginal discs.
- Understanding hedgehog signaling is key to deciphering developmental processes and tissue patterning.
Purpose of the Study:
- To characterize a dominant gain-of-function allele of the segment polarity gene hedgehog.
- To investigate the effects of ectopic hedgehog expression on wing disc development and other imaginal derivatives.
Main Methods:
- Generation and analysis of a dominant gain-of-function hedgehog allele.
- Examination of wing disc morphology and gene expression patterns (hedgehog mRNA, decapentaplegic gene).
- Assessment of effects on other imaginal derivatives like legs, antennae, and eyes.
Main Results:
- Ectopic hedgehog mRNA expression in the anterior compartment of wing discs.
- Overgrowth of anterior wing tissue and partial duplication of distal wing structures.
- Duplications in legs and antennae, and malformations in eyes; posterior compartment unaffected.
- Perturbed expression of the decapentaplegic gene in mutant wing discs.
Conclusions:
- Hedgehog protein acts as a signaling molecule instructing neighboring cells in the wing.
- This signaling specifies cell fates appropriate to the region anterior to the compartmental boundary.
- The gain-of-function mutation provides insights into hedgehog pathway regulation during development.