Abstract
Segmentation of the Drosophila embryo is initiated by localized maternal signals. In this context, anteriorly localized Bicoid activates the gap genes in the anterior half of the embryo while posteriorly localized Nanos represses the translation of maternal hunchback mRNA to pattern the posterior half. The non-segmented termini are patterned by the localized activation of mitogen-activated protein kinase. Yet, the spatial extent of the terminal patterning system in regulating gap genes beyond poles remains unknown. We investigated the patterning potential of the terminal system using mutagenized embryos that lack both the anterior and the posterior maternal signaling systems. Using a combination of quantitative imaging and mathematical modeling, we analyzed the spatial patterns of gap genes in the early Drosophila embryo. We found that this mutant embryo develops symmetric cuticle patterns along the anteroposterior axis with two segments on each side. Notably, the terminal system can affect the expression of Krüppel in the torso region. Our mathematical model recapitulates the experimental data and reveals the potential bistability in the terminal patterning system. Collectively, our study suggests that the terminal system can act as a long-range inductive signal and establish multiple gene expression boundaries along the anteroposterior axis of the developing embryo.
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Abbreviations
- OreR:
-
Oregon R
- AP:
-
Anteroposterior
- Bcd:
-
Bicoid
- Hb:
-
Hunchback
- MAPK:
-
Mitogen-activated protein kinase
- ERK:
-
Extracellular signal-regulated kinase
- dpERK:
-
Diphosphorylated ERK
- Tor:
-
Torso
- Trk:
-
Trunk
- Tll:
-
Tailless
- Hkb:
-
Huckebein
- Cic:
-
Capicua
- Gro:
-
Groucho
- FISH:
-
Fluorescent in situ hybridization
- PBS:
-
Phosphate-buffered saline
- PBST:
-
Phosphate buffered saline with 0.02% Triton X-100
- DIG:
-
Digoxigenin
- BIO:
-
Biotin
- FITC:
-
Fluorescein
- WBR:
-
Western blocking reagent
- BSA:
-
Bovine serum albumin
- NGS:
-
Normal goat serum
- Kr:
-
Krüppel
- Kni:
-
Knirps
- Gt:
-
Giant
- GOF:
-
Gain-of-function
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Acknowledgements
We thank Dr. Eric Wieschaus for providing bcd hb nos mutant flies and for the helpful discussions. K. M. O. was supported by thesis research funds by Princeton University. Y.K. was supported by the internal fund of Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI) [22RB1100, Exploratory and Strategic Research of ETRI-KAIST ICT Future Technology (Grant number: N05220126)].
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K.M.O., S.Y.S., and Y.K. designed the experiments, K.M.O. and Y.K. performed the experiments. K.L., K.M.O., and J.K., performed image analysis. K.L., K.M.O., and Y.K. wrote the paper. All authors analyzed the data.
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Lee, K., O’Neill, K.M., Ku, J. et al. Patterning potential of the terminal system in the Drosophila embryo. Korean J. Chem. Eng. 40, 436–444 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11814-022-1298-6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11814-022-1298-6