Drosophila E-cadherin functions in hematopoietic progenitors to maintain multipotency and block differentiation.

ABSTRACT: A fundamental question in stem cell biology concerns the regulatory strategies that control the choice between multipotency and differentiation. Drosophila blood progenitors or prohemocytes exhibit key stem cell characteristics, including multipotency, quiescence, and niche dependence. As a result, studies of Drosophila hematopoiesis have provided important insights into the molecular mechanisms that control these processes. Here, we show that E-cadherin is an important regulator of prohemocyte fate choice, maintaining prohemocyte multipotency and blocking differentiation. These functions are reminiscent of the role of E-cadherin in mammalian embryonic stem cells. We also show that mis-expression of E-cadherin in differentiating hemocytes disrupts the boundary between these cells and undif

SUBMITTER: Gao H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3764055 | biostudies-literature | 2013

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature