Melanization regulates wound healing by limiting polyploid cell growth in the Drosophila epithelium.

ABSTRACT: Wound healing requires a localized response that restricts growth, remodeling, and inflammation to the site of injury. In the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, the epithelium heals puncture wounds through cell growth instead of cell division. Epithelial cells on wound margin both fuse and duplicate their genome to generate a multinucleated, polyploid cell essential for tissue repair. Despite the essential role of polyploidy in wound healing, the signals that initiate and regulate the extent of cell growth at the wound site remain poorly understood. One of the first steps in wound healing requires the deposit of melanin at the site of injury, which persists as a melanin scar. The melanin scar forms within hours after a puncture wound and is dependent on the activation of 3 prophenoloxidas

SUBMITTER: Gonzalez-Baez L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12406004 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature