A Database of Drosophila Genes & Genomes

FB2013_03, released May 7th, 2013
 

Reference Report

Reference
Citation Sharrow, M., Tiemeyer, M. (2001). Gliolectin-mediated carbohydrate binding at the Drosophila midline ensures the fidelity of axon pathfinding.  Development 128(22): 4585--4595. (Export to RIS)
FlyBase ID FBrf0141488
Publication Type Research paper
PubMed ID 11714683
PubMed Abstract Gliolectin is a carbohydrate-binding protein (lectin) that mediates cell adhesion in vitro and is expressed by midline glial cells in the Drosophila melanogaster embryo. Gliolectin expression is maximal during early pathfinding of commissural axons across the midline (stages 12-13), a process that requires extensive signaling and cell-cell interactions between the midline glia and extending axons. Deletion of the gliolectin locus disrupts the formation of commissural pathways and also delays the completion of longitudinal pathfinding. The disruption in commissure formation is accompanied by reduced axon-glial contact, such that extending axons grow on other axons and form a tightly fasciculated bundle that arches over the midline. By contrast, pioneering commissural axons normally cross the midline as a distributed array of fibers that interdigitate among the midline glia, maximizing contact and, therefor, communication between axon and glia. Restoration of Gliolectin protein expression in the midline glia rescues the observed pathfinding defects of null mutants in a dose-dependent manner. Hypomorphic alleles generated by ethylmethanesulfonate mutagenesis exhibit a similar phenotype in combination with a deletion and these defects are also rescued by transgenic expression of Gliolectin protein. The observed phenotypes indicate that carbohydrate-lectin interactions at the Drosophila midline provide the necessary surface contact to capture extending axons, thereby ensuring that combinatorial codes of positive and negative growth signals are interpreted appropriately.
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Language of Publication English
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Publication Type Journal
Abbreviation Development
Title Development
Publication Year 1987-
ISBN/ISSN 0950-1991
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