The BMP signaling pathway has a conserved role in dorsal-ventral axis patterning during embryonic development. In Drosophila, graded BMP signaling is transduced by the Mad transcription factor and opposed by the Brinker repressor. In this study, using the Drosophila embryo as a model, we combine RNA-seq with Mad and Brinker ChIP-seq to decipher the BMP-responsive transcriptional network underpi...

Congenital heart defects, clinically identified in both small and large animals, are multifactorial and complex. Although heritable factors are known to have a role in cardiovascular disease, the full genetic aetiology remains unclear. Model organism research has proven valuable in providing a deeper understanding of the essential factors in heart development. For example, mouse knock-out studi...

Insect embryos complete the outer form of the body via dorsal closure (DC) of the epidermal flanks, replacing the transient extraembryonic (EE) tissue. Cell shape changes and morphogenetic behavior are well characterized for DC in Drosophila, but these data represent a single species with a secondarily reduced EE component (the amnioserosa) that is not representative across the insects. Here, w...

In eukaryotes, vesicle trafficking is regulated by the small monomeric GTPases of the Rab protein family. Rab11, (a subfamily of the Ypt/Rab gene family) an evolutionarily conserved, ubiquitously expressed subfamily of small monomeric Rab GTPases, has been implicated in regulating vesicular trafficking through the recycling of endosomal compartment. In an earlier communication, we have shown th...

Classical genetics indicates that the achaete-scute gene complex (AS-C) of Drosophila promotes development of neural progenitor cells. To further analyze the function of proneural genes, we have studied the effects of Gal4-mediated expression of lethal of scute, a member of the AS-C, during embryogenesis. Expression of lethal of scute forces progenitor cells of larval internal sensory organs, w...

The dorsal-ventral patterning of the Drosophila embryo is controlled by a well-defined gene regulation network. We wish to understand how changes in this network produce evolutionary diversity in insect gastrulation. The present study focuses on the dorsal ectoderm in two highly divergent dipterans, the fruitfly Drosophila melanogaster and the mosquito Anopheles gambiae. In D. melanogaster, the...

In eukaryotes, vesicle trafficking is regulated by the small monomeric GTPases of the Rab protein family. Rab11, (a subfamily of the Ypt/Rab gene family) an evolutionarily conserved, ubiquitously expressed subfamily of small monomeric Rab GTPases, has been implicated in regulating vesicular trafficking through the recycling of endosomal compartment. In an earlier communication, we have shown th...

The mouse bone morphogenetic protein1 (Bmp1) gene encodes a secreted astacin metalloprotease that cleaves the COOH-propeptide of procollagen I, II and III. BMP-1 is also related to the product of the Drosophila patterning gene, tolloid (tld), which enhances the activity of the TGFbeta-related growth factor Decapentaplegic and promotes development of the dorsalmost amnioserosa. We have disrupted...

Dead cells in most epithelia are eliminated by cell extrusion. Here, we explore whether cell delamination in the amnioserosa, a seemingly stochastic event that results in the extrusion of a small fraction of cells and known to provide a force for dorsal closure, is contingent upon the receipt of an apoptotic signal. Through the analysis of mutant combinations and the profiling of apoptotic sign...

Abstract Oscillatory behaviour in force-generating systems is a pervasive phenomenon in cell biology. In this work, we investigate how oscillations in the actomyosin cytoskeleton drive cell shape changes during the process of Dorsal Closure, a morphogenetic event in Drosophila embryo development whereby epidermal continuity is generated through the pulsatile apical area reduction of cells const...