Sexual back talk with evolutionary implications: stimulation of the Drosophila sex-determination gene sex-lethal by its target transformer.

ABSTRACT: We describe a surprising new regulatory relationship between two key genes of the Drosophila sex-determination gene hierarchy, Sex-lethal (Sxl) and transformer (tra). A positive autoregulatory feedback loop for Sxl was known to maintain somatic cell female identity by producing SXL-F protein to continually instruct the target gene transformer (tra) to make its feminizing product, TRA-F. We discovered the reciprocal regulatory effect by studying genetically sensitized females: TRA-F from either maternal or zygotic tra expression stimulates Sxl-positive autoregulation. We found female-specific tra mRNA in eggs as predicted by this tra maternal effect, but not predicted by the prevailing view that tra has no germline function. TRA-F stimulation of Sxl seems to be direct at some point, since S

SUBMITTER: Siera SG 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2600935 | biostudies-literature | 2008 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature