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Torso-like functions independently of Torso to regulate Drosophila growth and developmental timing
Citation
Johnson, TK and Crossman, T and Foote, KA and Henstridge, MA and Saligari, MJ and Beadle, LF and Herr, A and Whisstock, JC and Warr, CG, Torso-like functions independently of Torso to regulate Drosophila growth and developmental timing, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 110, (36) pp. 14688-14692. ISSN 1091-6490 (2013) [Refereed Article]
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Copyright Statement
Copyright 2013 The Authors
DOI: doi:10.1073/pnas.1309780110
Abstract
Activation of the Drosophila receptor tyrosine kinase Torso (Tor) only at the termini of the embryo is achieved by the localized expression of the maternal gene Torso-like (Tsl). Tor has a second function in the prothoracic gland as the receptor for prothoracicotropic hormone (PTTH) that initiates metamorphosis. Consistent with the function of Tor in this tissue, Tsl also localizes to the prothoracic gland and influences developmental timing. Despite these commonalities, in our studies of Tsl we unexpectedly found that tsl and tor have opposing effects on body size; tsl null mutants are smaller than normal, rather than larger as would be expected if the PTTH/Tor pathway was disrupted. We further found that whereas both genes regulate developmental timing, tsl does so independently of tor. Although tsl null mutants exhibit a similar length delay in time to pupariation to tor mutants, in tsl: tor double mutants this delay is strikingly enhanced. Thus, loss of tsl is additive rather than epistatic to loss of tor. We also find that phenotypes generated by ectopic PTTH expression are independent of tsl. Finally, we show that a modified form of tsl that can rescue developmental timing cannot rescue terminal patterning, indicating that Tsl can function via distinct mechanisms in different contexts. We conclude that Tsl is not just a specialized cue for Torso signaling but also acts independently of PTTH/Tor in the control of body size and the timing of developmental progression. These data highlight surprisingly diverse developmental functions for this sole Drosophila member of the perforin-like superfamily.
Item Details
| Item Type: | Refereed Article |
|---|---|
| Keywords: | Ecdysis; Growth rate; Heterochrony; MACPF; perforin; protein tyrosine kinase; receptor tyrosine kinase torso; unclassified drug; Drosophila protein; insect hormone; protein tyrosine kinase; prothoracicotropic hormone; torso protein, Drosophila; male |
| Research Division: | Biological Sciences |
| Research Group: | Genetics |
| Research Field: | Developmental genetics (incl. sex determination) |
| Objective Division: | Expanding Knowledge |
| Objective Group: | Expanding knowledge |
| Objective Field: | Expanding knowledge in the biological sciences |
| UTAS Author: | Warr, CG (Professor Coral Warr) |
| ID Code: | 131853 |
| Year Published: | 2013 |
| Web of Science® Times Cited: | 43 |
| Deposited By: | Office of the School of Medicine |
| Deposited On: | 2019-04-09 |
| Last Modified: | 2019-05-14 |
| Downloads: | 25 View Download Statistics |
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