Sci. Signal. - Wingless信号非浓度梯度促进果蝇翅膀增殖生长 Morphogen, Wingless信号, 细胞增殖, 果蝇

一般的观点认为，Morphogen 的浓度梯度对于器官的模式形成和生长控制起关键作用。最新一期的 Sci. Signal. 中的报道表明，Wingless 信号在果蝇翅膀中并非梯度依赖型分布，但同样能促进翅膀的增殖。暗示 morphogen 的梯度效应对于细胞增殖过程可能不起作用，最起码在果蝇的翅膀发育过程中。也从一个侧面说明了信号转导及调节的多样性和特异性。（基因狗生物论坛快讯）

pdf abstract:
Wingless Promotes Proliferative Growth in a Gradient-Independent Manner

Luis Alberto Baena-Lopez1*, Xavier Franch-Marro2,3*, and Jean-Paul Vincent1{dagger}

1 Department of Developmental Neurobiology, MRC National Institute for Medical Research, The Ridgeway, Mill Hill, London NW7 1AA, UK.
2 Institut de Biologia Molecular de Barcelona, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Parc Científic de Barcelona, 08028 Barcelona, Spain.
3 Institut de Recerca Biomèdica, Parc Científic de Barcelona, 08028 Barcelona, Spain.
* These authors contributed equally to this work.

Abstract: Morphogens form concentration gradients that organize patterns of cells and control growth. It has been suggested that, rather than the intensity of morphogen signaling, it is its gradation that is the relevant modulator of cell proliferation. According to this view, the ability of morphogens to regulate growth during development depends on their graded distributions. Here, we describe an experimental test of this model for Wingless, one of the key organizers of wing development in Drosophila. Maximal Wingless signaling suppresses cellular proliferation. In contrast, we found that moderate and uniform amounts of exogenous Wingless, even in the absence of endogenous Wingless, stimulated proliferative growth. Beyond a few cell diameters from the source, Wingless was relatively constant in abundance and thus provided a homogeneous growth-promoting signal. Although morphogen signaling may act in combination with as yet uncharacterized graded growth-promoting pathways, we suggest that the graded nature of morphogen signaling is not required for proliferation, at least in the developing Drosophila wing, during the main period of growth.

{dagger} To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: jvincen@nimr.mrc.ac.uk

Citation: L. A. Baena-Lopez, X. Franch-Marro, J.-P. Vincent, Wingless Promotes Proliferative Growth in a Gradient-Independent Manner. Sci. Signal. 2, ra60 (2009).