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© The Rockefeller University Press,
0021-9525/2001//1 $5.00
The Journal of Cell Biology, Volume 152, Number 1,
, 2001 1-14
Original Article |
Wasp, the Drosophila Wiskott-Aldrich Syndrome Gene Homologue, Is Required for Cell Fate Decisions Mediated by Notch Signaling
Eyal.Schejter{at}weizmann.ac.il
Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome proteins, encoded by the Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome gene family, bridge signal transduction pathways and the microfilament-based cytoskeleton. Mutations in the Drosophila homologue, Wasp (Wsp), reveal an essential requirement for this gene in implementation of cell fate decisions during adult and embryonic sensory organ development. Phenotypic analysis of Wsp mutant animals demonstrates a bias towards neuronal differentiation, at the expense of other cell types, resulting from improper execution of the program of asymmetric cell divisions which underlie sensory organ development. Generation of two similar daughter cells after division of the sensory organ precursor cell constitutes a prominent defect in the Wsp sensory organ lineage. The asymmetric segregation of key elements such as Numb is unaffected during this division, despite the misassignment of cell fates. The requirement for Wsp extends to additional cell fate decisions in lineages of the embryonic central nervous system and mesoderm. The nature of the Wsp mutant phenotypes, coupled with genetic interaction studies, identifies an essential role for Wsp in lineage decisions mediated by the Notch signaling pathway.
Key Words: cytoskeleton Drosophila peripheral nervous system signal transduction Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome
© 2001 The Rockefeller University Press
Abbreviations used in this paper: Ac, Achaete; APF, after puparium formation; CNS, central nervous system; Ct, Cut; Eve, Even-Skipped; GBD, GTPase binding domain; Kr, Kruppel; N, Notch; NGS, normal goat serum; N-WASP, neuronal WASP; PC, pericardial; PNS, peripheral nervous system; Pon, Partner of Numb; SOP, sensory organ precursor; Su(H), Suppressor-of-Hairless; Sv, Shaven; WAS, Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome; WASP, WAS protein; Wsp, Wasp.
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