Response to the BMP gradient requires highly combinatorial inputs from multiple patterning systems in the Drosophila embryo.

ABSTRACT: Pattern formation in the developing embryo relies on key regulatory molecules, many of which are distributed in concentration gradients. For example, a gradient of BMP specifies cell fates along the dorsoventral axis in species ranging from flies to mammals. In Drosophila, a gradient of the BMP molecule Dpp gives rise to nested domains of target gene expression in the dorsal region of the embryo; however, the mechanisms underlying the differential response are not well understood, partly owing to an insufficient number of well-studied targets. Here we analyze how the Dpp gradient regulates expression of pannier (pnr), a candidate low-level Dpp target gene. We predicted that the pnr enhancer would contain high-affinity binding sites for the Dpp effector Smad transcription factors, which wou

SUBMITTER: Liang HL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3347688 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature