QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s):
Home     Help     Feedback     Subscriptions     Archive     Search     Table of Contents

First published online 15 October 2003
doi: 10.1242/dev.00832

This Article Figures Only Full Text Full Text (PDF) All Versions of this Article: dev.00832v1 130/24/5929    most recent Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Related articles in Development Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Estella, C. Articles by Morata, G. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Estella, C. Articles by Morata, G.

The role of buttonhead and Sp1 in the development of the ventral imaginal discs of Drosophila

Carlos Estella, Gabrielle Rieckhof^*, Manuel Calleja and Ginés Morata

Centro de Biología Molecular CSIC-UAM, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, 28049 Madrid, Spain

Author for correspondence (e-mail: gmorata{at}cbm.uam.es)

Accepted 27 August 2003

The related genes buttonhead (btd) and Drosophila Sp1 (the Drosophila homologue of the human SP1 gene) encode zinc-finger transcription factors known to play a developmental role in the formation of the Drosophila head segments and the mechanosensory larval organs. We report a novel function of btd and Sp1: they induce the formation and are required for the growth of the ventral imaginal discs. They act as activators of the headcase (hdc) and Distal-less (Dll) genes, which allocate the cells of the disc primordia. The requirement for btd and Sp1 persists during the development of ventral discs: inactivation by RNA interference results in a strong reduction of the size of legs and antennae. Ectopic expression of btd in the dorsal imaginal discs (eyes, wings and halteres) results in the formation of the corresponding ventral structures (antennae and legs). However, these structures are not patterned by the morphogenetic signals present in the dorsal discs; the cells expressing btd generate their own signalling system, including the establishment of a sharp boundary of engrailed expression, and the local activation of the wingless and decapentaplegic genes. Thus, the Btd product has the capacity to induce the activity of the entire genetic network necessary for ventral imaginal discs development. We propose that this property is a reflection of the initial function of the btd/Sp1 genes that consists of establishing the fate of the ventral disc primordia and determining their pattern and growth.

Key words: Drosophila, Imaginal discs, btd, Sp1, Zinc-finger transcription factors

Related articles in Development:

Giving flies a leg up

Development 2003 130: 2405. [Full Text]  

This article has been cited by other articles:

				C. Estella and R. S. Mann Logic of Wg and Dpp induction of distal and medial fates in the Drosophila leg Development, February 15, 2008; 135(4): 627 - 636. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				X. Franch-Marro, N. Martin, M. Averof, and J. Casanova Association of tracheal placodes with leg primordia in Drosophila and implications for the origin of insect tracheal systems Development, March 1, 2006; 133(5): 785 - 790. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				D. Foronda, B. Estrada, L. de Navas, and E. Sanchez-Herrero Requirement of abdominal-A and Abdominal-B in the developing genitalia of Drosophila breaks the posterior downregulation rule Development, January 1, 2006; 133(1): 117 - 127. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				A. Beermann, M. Aranda, and R. Schroder The Sp8 zinc-finger transcription factor is involved in allometric growth of the limbs in the beetle Tribolium castaneum Development, February 15, 2004; 131(4): 733 - 742. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]