Sexually dimorphic regulation of the Wingless morphogen controls sex-specific segment number in Drosophila.

ABSTRACT: Sexual dimorphism is widespread throughout the metazoa and plays important roles in mate recognition and preference, sex-based niche partitioning, and sex-specific coadaptation. One notable example of sex-specific differences in insect body morphology is presented by the higher diptera, such as Drosophila, in which males develop fewer abdominal segments than females. Because diversity in segment number is a distinguishing feature of major arthropod clades, it is of fundamental interest to understand how different numbers of segments can be generated within the same species. Here we show that sex-specific and segment-specific regulation of the Wingless (Wg) morphogen underlies the development of sexually dimorphic adult segment number in Drosophila. Wg expression is repressed in the develop

SUBMITTER: Wang W 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3131337 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature