The CRAL/TRIO and GOLD domain protein CGR-1 promotes induction of vulval cell fates in Caenorhabditis elegans and interacts genetically with the Ras signaling pathway.

ABSTRACT: Ras-mediated signaling is necessary for the induction of vulval cell fates during Caenorhabditis elegans development. We identified cgr-1 by screening for suppressors of the ectopic vulval cell fates caused by a gain-of-function mutation of the let-60 ras gene. Analysis of two cgr-1 loss-of-function mutations indicates that cgr-1 positively regulates induction of vulval cell fates. cgr-1 is likely to function at a step in the Ras signaling pathway that is downstream of let-60, which encodes Ras, and upstream of lin-1, which encodes a transcription factor, if these genes function in a linear signaling pathway. These genetic studies are also consistent with the model that cgr-1 functions in a parallel pathway that promotes vulval cell fates. Localized expression studies suggest that cgr-1 fu

SUBMITTER: Goldstein JL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC1456255 | biostudies-literature | 2006 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature